Electric Vehicle Prices Reduced After GST Rate Cut
Following GST rate cut from 12 percent to 5 percent which came into effect on August 1, electric vehicle manufacturers have reduced their prices to pass on the benefit to the consumers.
Saving for Another Day
Electric two-wheeler companies
Okinawa
Gurgaon-based Okinawa Autotech announced a price cut across its electric scooter range after GST rate revision for electric vehicles. The Okinawa range which are powered by the Lead Acid battery saw a rate reduction by ₹ 2,500-4,700, while the models using a Lithium-ion battery got a steeper price cut between ₹ 3,400-8,600.
Under the new rates, EVs are charged 5 percent GST instead of the older 12 percent. The drop in prices clubbed with FAME II subsidy has made the on-road price of the electric scooters much lower than the current asking price. The new prices have been effective since August 1, 2019.
Ampere
The engineering firm Greaves Cotton’s e-mobility subsidiary Ampere Vehicles announced a price cut of up to ₹ 5,000 on its e-scooters in the wake of government reducing GST.
Ampere’s flagship e-scooter, the Zeal, is now available for ₹ 67,000, which is a significant reduction of around ₹ 5,000. Ampere’s other models, however, witnessed a smaller reduction in price – closer to ₹ 3,000.
The Coimbatore-based Ampere Vehicle also added in a release that Ampere Zeal price includes FAME (Faster Adoption and Manufacture of (Hybrid and) Electric Vehicles)-II incentives. Similarly, the price of the Rio LA e-scooter has been slashed by ₹ 3,000 to ₹ 40,000 and that of the Rio Li e-scooter to ₹ 52,500 from ₹ 56,000 earlier, the company said. The Ampere’s V-48LI scooter will now cost its rider ₹ 50,000 as against ₹ 53,000 earlier, it said.
Ather
Ather Energy recently cut down the prices of its products by a significant amount. The Ather 450 got a price drop of ₹ 9,000, while the Ather 340 got its price dropped by ₹ 8,000.
Bangalore-based Indian startup Ather specializes in electric vehicle manufacturing and is backed by Honda Motorcorp. It entered the two-wheeled electric vehicles race in India with two models, the Ather 450 and the Ather 340. Both the e-scoote₹ share a BLDC electric motor, with different power outputs.
The Ather 450 will be sold at ₹ 1.13 lakh while the Ather 340 will cost ₹ 1.02 lakh in Bangalore(on-road). In Chennai, the Ather 450 will be sold at ₹ 1.22 lakh and the Ather 340 will cost ₹ 1.10 lakh(on-road).
EV Makers
Tata Motors
Tata Motors that sells the electric version of Tigor has reduced prices by up to ₹ 80,000 across its variants, with effect from August 1. Tigor EV, which was earlier priced between ₹ 12.35 lakh and ₹ 12.71 lakh (ex-showroom price in Mumbai) and will now be available to customers between ₹ 11.58 lakh and ₹ 11.92 lakh.
Mahindra Electric
Mahindra Electric, the EV-making arm of Mahindra & Mahindra, also announced price cuts. After the reduction, prices of Mahindra eVerito will come down by ₹ 80,000 and cost ₹ 10.71 lakh (including FAME benefits – on-road in Delhi). The price of Treo three-wheeler will go down by up to ₹ 20,000 and will now start at ₹ 2.05 lakh (on-road), the company said.
India sold close to 126,000 EVs in 2018-19; a majority were two-wheelers. As of now, Mahindra and Tata Motors are the only two companies that sell EVs. Last month, Hyundai Motor India launched the premium electric car offering Kona. Priced at ₹ 25 lakh, the company claims to have got an encouraging response to its offering.
