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Marking a second consecutive month of decline, monthly registrations of electric two-wheelers (E2Ws) in India fell below the 2 Lakh mark in August. As per Vahan data, E2W registrations fell by 16.2% to 1.72 Lakh units in August from 2.05 Lakh units in July and most players witnessed a substantial month-on-month decrease in registrations. Important to highlight that the E2W registrations in July stood at 1.91 Lakh units when Inc42 reported the monthly numbers on July 31, a 7.3% dip from the updated figure reported today. From a year-on-year (YoY) lens, however, monthly registrations have jumped by 64% from 1.05 Lakh units in August 2025. Earlier this month, the Central government halved the incentive for registered E2Ws to ₹2,500 per kWh of battery capacity, capped at ₹5,000 per vehicle, for the period from April 1, 2025 to March 31, 2028. This compares with an incentive of ₹5,000 per kWh, capped at ₹10,000 per vehicle, under the FY25 scheme. With policy support becoming more modest, affordability is emerging as an increasingly important lever for adoption, particularly as manufacturers look to expand beyond premium early adopters and tap the much larger commuter segment in India's $30 Bn two-wheeler market TVS Motors, Bajaj Auto, Ola Electric, Ather Energy, among others, have introduced variants that are priced below ₹1 Lakh in recent months. The shift highlights focus toward affordability, practical range, lower running costs and familiar commuter-focused designs. TVS Motor, Bajaj Maintain Lead E2W market leader TVS Motor led the charge in August as well despite a substantial MoM dip. Registrations for the month stood at 46,587, down about 17% from 55,823 units in July. Its flagship, iQube, crossed the 1 Mn cumulative customer milestone during the month. This came alongside the launch of a new 2.3 kWh iQube variant, priced at ₹1.16 Lakh, aimed at making the e-scooter more accessible to mass-market buyers. The company also doubled down on its international expansion for its EV portfolio, launching iQube in Kenya and introducing the portfolio in Sri Lanka. Meanwhile, Bajaj Auto continued to strengthen its position in the market in August, as its Chetak portfolio helped it close the gap with market leader TVS Motor. The company registered 45,861 E2W during the month, taking its market share to 22.5%. Bajaj is also ramping up Chetak’s production capacity to 60,000 units per month to cater to increasing demand. The momentum has helped Bajaj cross the 3 Lakh E2W sales mark in CY26, making it the second EV maker after TVS to reach the milestone. The company is also working on introducing new Chetak models as well as electric motorcycles in the near future. Hero MotoCorp recorded 17,432 units in August, down 24% compared to 22,989 units in the previous month. Hero has doubled its monthly EV production capacity to 30,000 units from 15,000 units at the end of FY26. It now plans to increase this figure by a further 50% to 45,000 by the end of the ongoing fiscal. Separately, Hero has doubled down on its EV ecosystem play by raising its stake in Ather Energy to 32.8% through an investment of up to ₹1,758 Cr. Ather, Ola Electric Hold Relatively Steady Bhavish Aggarwal-led Ola Electric saw a 7.7% dip in registrations during the month to 13,132 units from 14,226 units in the previous month. Despite this, its market share improved to 7.6% during the month from 6.8% in July. The company is now targeting the mass market range by introducing its new S1Z range, priced from ₹79,999. Offered with 3.1 kWh and 5.1 kWh battery options, the scooters have claimed ranges of up to 179 km and 301 km, respectively. Amid the decline, the company secured a ₹95.81 Cr incentive under the MHI's Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme for advanced automotive technology (AAT) products. This pertains to sales in the fiscal year FY27, making it the third consecutive year for the company that Ola Electric has received the incentive. Beyond new models, the EV major is also using the S1Z to showcase its battery technology, with the scooter becoming its first model to use its indigenously developed Bharat Cell LFP technology. Alongside its product push, Ola Electric is also scaling up its battery manufacturing ambitions, with the government extending the timeline for the company to meet its advanced chemistry cell manufacturing commitments under the ACC PLI scheme. Ather Energy, however, continued to maintain a healthy lead over its archrival. The new-age tech company recorded 27,218 registrations in August, down 11% from 30,632 in July. The company is now taking the mass market route to further improve its sales. It launched a new e-scooter variant, the Konarc, in August, priced at ₹99,999. Konark is its first scooter built on the new EL platform However, it continues to face supply constraints, with demand exceeding its existing production capacity. Ather is therefore ramping up its manufacturing footprint, with its new AURIC facility expected to help bridge the gap.
document fetched 2026-09-01 02:51 · canonical https://inc42.com/buzz/e2w-registrations-contract-by-over-16-in-august-ola-electrics-market-share-improves