In Tiago EV, Tata Motors Sees A Bestseller On Hand

Tata Motors Ltd. has launched India's most affordable electric car, strengthening its dominance in the battery-powered vehicle segment at a time automakers are gearing up to ride the nation's green wave.

The Tiago EV comes with two battery pack options—19.2 kWh with a range of 250 km and 24 kWh with 315-km range as per Indian driving cycle standards (MIDC), according to a company statement.

The variant with the smaller battery pack has a starting ex-showroom price of Rs 8.5 lakh, while that with bigger battery pack will cost Rs 10 lakh.

The pricing, however, is introductory and will be valid for the first 10,000 customers, of which 2,000 will be reserved for existing Tata Motors customers looking to buy an additional vehicle.

Previously, Tata Motors' Tigor EV was the most affordable EV in India with a starting ex-showroom price of Rs 12.5 lakh.

“The car [Tiago EV] is for people who drive around 50 kilometres a day, live in congested cities or are looking for a second car in the family,” Shailesh Chandra, managing director at Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles Ltd., said at the launch event on Wednesday. With the kind of features and range it offers, it could be the best-selling EV in the country, he said.

With 88% market share in the electric car market, the maker of the Nexon EV has maintained a considerable lead over its rivals.

“While the car may not sell in as high numbers as Tata expects, the lowest-ever price range will attract a lot of buyers,” Suraj Ghosh, director-mobility at S&P Global, said. Nearly 75% car buyers are in the sub-Rs 10 lakh range and capturing even a small part of that will be enough to make it a success, he said.

The rest of the company's EV models have witnessed a 25-30% penetration and similar volumes are expected for Tiago EV, the management said.

Tata Motors sold over 19,000 units of EVs in financial year 2021-22, a growth of 350% over the year earlier.

Tiago EV's booking will start from Oct. 10 and deliveries will begin from January next year. The three-month gap will allow the company to assess the demand and plan the production accordingly.

Chandra had announced the launch of Tiago EV on Electric Vehicle Day earlier this month. Currently, Tata Motors sells Tigor EV, Nexon EV, Nexon EV Prime and Nexon EV Max in the personal segment, and Xpres-T to the fleet operators.

While compact SUV Nexon EV has managed to capture buyers' attention, sales of Tigor EV sedan haven't taken off due to lower popularity of sedan body-type among buyers, Ghosh said.

The performance of Tiago EV may also be a key factor for buyers, any major difference in performance compared to the conventional Tiago may discourage the buyers from opting for the electric variant.