[Kosfactor]

Is this because EScooter manufacturers complained to government that due to the current political situation with China they find it impossible to source a battery?

Or is this creating a loophole where battery is sold / leased as an accessory without any warranty / liability incase of a fireball?

This would also make buyers think that an EV is competitively priced in comparison to IC cars.

[vishwasvr]

I don't understand this move at all by the government. It's like saying, buy an ICE car, but doesn't come with an engine/seats/lights etc, all of them are an add on.

It's a good idea for the dealer to at least support with the first battery. Like an add on.

[sunnsood]

I really don't know how this is taking us forward. Other than providing a loophole for manufacturers to decouple Chinese batteries. How many batteries would be needed for a single two or three wheeler when getting the initial one is so difficult with decent range and quality?

In EV vehicles, most expensive item is battery. Most R&D is required on improving batteries and making the entire body shock/fire proof. As always Indian manufacturers taking the easy way out of finding a jugaad where they don't spend on R&D and make it someone else's problem. As always, another govt decision without thinking 5-10 years down the line.

[omranga98]

I can totally imagine companies advertising "Now comes with battery included" like it's some flash light or a cheap toy car.
Better move towards standardisation would be to create certain parameters that direct battery size, specification, port designs and other crucial bits.

[Bsimhan]

I am not so sure about the notification. What will happen to the manufacturer's warranties? How about the safety aspect - manufacturers will pin everything on the after-market battery I think.
As a first step, the battery ports for charging should be standardised. If this is not done, it will lead to each manufacturer having proprietary ports. I don't know if the battery pack can be standardised. People with more knowledge about this will know. Again, the battery capacity may vary between manufacturers leading to further confusion.
This is equivalent to having your own engine or transmission fitted to suit. Also how will the RTO register a non functional car in case the customer proposes to fit the battery pack in at a later date.
This is similar to the notification on the spare tyre being done away with. This looks to me like a case of some arm chair manager trying to propose technology changes. We need practical, experienced people in policy matters to make or suggest improvements. This notification will only make matters worse.

[coolkurt]

The intention of the government is right. The only issue is, that in a country like India, without explicit clarity, there's a lot of space for maneuverability. Which in this case implies margins.

The flood of battery options at different price points will soon be evident, and the growth driver will predominantly be rural areas, where things like vehicle insurance penetration etc is already abysmal.

[MVSN]

Whilst this might seem like a good move, it is likely to be a huge safety hazard, with non standard, non certified batteries being sold in the grey market. We have safety and compliance issues in this country. The CNG/LPG conversions are a good indicater.

[VeluM]

“Batteries not included”

Jokes apart, there has to be a concurrent policy on battery quality and integration. Installing a battery in a two-wheeler may not be a massive task for most people, but only if the connection is standardised - like a USB-C port for example.

Charging will also have to be standardised or at least have a minimum acceptable standard in terms of type, voltage, and current. Or maybe a standard each for AC & DC chargers.

I don’t think the people buying such a vehicle will need to worry about carrying a battery to the showroom, because the required infrastructure will have to come up, else people will not buy them at all.

Like if one goes to buy a torch, the shops that sell them will invariably also stock batteries that fit. Capacity/size indicators such as AA & AAA for these batteries can be used to help consumers choose, and vehicle manufacturers define range.

[NiInJa]

Guess who is going to be the happiest ? Two wheeler thieves ! If not the scooter, lets steal the battery pack !

One thing I can see is manufacturers can come with different battery capacities for the same vehicle and depending on one's affordability he can buy a lower capacity battery at lower initial cost. Then some years down the line he can upgrade it to higher one if at all needed without the need to replace the whole scooter ?
I also feel this would stop cartelisation of E-scooters in future in terms of claimed distance. e.g. If one manufacturer claims 100 km range, the other one will claim just about the same range for the same price. He will then launch another one with 200 km range for double the price when its just the battery capacity that is increasing. The first one will do the same, thus 'regulating' the price of e-scooters.
Now, if quality manufacturers like Duracell gets its own battery pack, I can plonk it in my scooter without the need to upgrade it.

Not sure if it will be of any help for cars though.

[Iyencar]

My conspiracy theory is that this has to do with the current Anti China sentiment. The govt is going after China in a big way- not awarding infra projects, stopping oil cos from chartering Chinese tankers, etc. With this move they can avoid penalizing the homegrown/based non-Chinese vehicle manufacturers while aggressively taxing and thus targeting the China based-battery makers. This should help in incentivizing India-based battery cos.

[rvd8732]

I can imagine if I opted for a car/scooter without the battery, I have to push the vehicle to a place where they sell universal batteries. OR I have to buy the battery and then go to pick up the vehicle

[Fx14]

Originally Posted by sunnsood

In EV vehicles, most expensive item is battery. Most R&D is required on improving batteries and making the entire body shock/fire proof.

Could this also lead to a number of other complications with regards to warranties / insurance etc.? Easy disclaimer for refusal of claims would be usage of swapped batteries not meeting exact specifications / operational guidelines hidden under various T&Cs.

[anjan_c2007]

The Ministry of Road Transport and Highways (MoRTH) notification juggles with conventional procedures, putting their "official" thoughts and words crisply. This according to the MoRTH is aimed at benefitting the new owners of EV's economically and will boost EV sales.

How much it benefits the owners and how much it boost the sales only time will tell !

The few counterviews are like:-

Q (1) The EV minus battery reduces GST levied on the ex-factory price of the vehicle.

Ans (1) Whether all the state governments will allow their share of GST to get reduced as a result ? Some of them will devise countermeasures to recover their lost GST from the very same EV post battery fitment. State governments are known to twist and turn Central notifications as was evident in the recently enhanced fines for MV Act penalties.

Q (2) The EV minus battery reduces the comprehensive insurance premium of the EV !

Ans (2) The insurance company will insure only the cost minus batteries (batteries are priced at presumably 30 to 40 % of each EV's cost). Hence, if the batteries are stolen, no reimbursement will come along from the insurers. Also, if the EV catches fire due to a battery short circuit, the insurer will raise objections even in courts of law to challenge the fact that the batteries were not insured and that the owner has fitted these which have caused the fire. They will depend upon their surveyors report.

Q (3) The EV owners need not buy batteries, just like diesel and petrol vehicle owners do not buy petrol pumps !

Ans (3) Batteries will have to be hired by the desirous EV owners from the establishments who are likely to offer these on hire. They will most likely charge a security deposit and also charge rent for the batteries loaned out. The security deposit would be equal or more than the cost of the batteries. How does the economics work out here ? The owner lands back on GROUND ZERO !

Hence, to me it appears that notification by bureaucrats juggles with conventional procedures and puts their thoughts and words crisply just to please their political bosses !

[prateekchanana]

Originally Posted by rahulskumar

With this approach, the road tax and insurance component will also decrease.

But If the insurance is calculated on cost of car excluding battery cost, then in case of an accident owners will look at major repair bills if something happens to the battery as they are a major part of cost.

The only benefit in this case can be road tax, that also only in cities which don't have zero road tax on EVs.

[groom]

Very important announcement.

This brings many things to table which the industry is waiting to shape.

1) The "sticker" shock in eVs is out of question now. Imagine an Ather and Activa at the same price. Awesome. ( or Ather is even cheaper although its bad for Ather as they dont have interchangeable or swappable battery)

2) This opens up a huge industry for Batteries in the form of Battery as service or Energy as a service - Imagine all those invertor / battery shops all around the corner - they will become the new age fuel suppliers - Energy as service providers. Imagine the battery charging stations are around the corner.

3) It also opens new challenges which industry must come forward to solve - How to charge insurance, how to makes batteries smarter - Battery in cloud, how to standardise battery, how standard batteries with different cell technologies can still be managed by the same battery management system, how fire hazards can be avoided, how we can handle end of life for batteries, how we can not get fooled by fully charged battery which discharges fast due to cell age, on and on. Lots of challenges and lots of innovations possible.

4) The resale value of the scooter will be a goner i think. I mean will the frame after four years be worth anything ? other than the copper in the motor?

Overall to start with, this is a very good move esp. for two-wheeler and three-wheeler.

The three-wheeler and e-rickshaw industry are immediate beneficiaries of this (the later more).