How Much Revenue is Asia-Pacific Electric Three-Wheeler Market Expected to Generate

 One of the biggest factors responsible for the growing adoption of electric three-wheelers in the Asia-Pacific (APAC) region is the rising number of government policies and incentives in the form of tax rebates and subsidies, encouraging the adoption of electric vehicles in several countries in the region. For instance, according to the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid &) and Electric Vehicles (FAME) in India, the government is offering subsidies in the range of $370–$900 on the purchase of electric vehicles in the country.

 

The other major factor fuelling the rise in the demand for electric three-wheelers in the APAC region is the low ownership costs of the electric vehicles. The operational expenses associated with an electric three-wheeler are almost 6 times lesser than that of the vehicles running on diesel/gasoline, on account of the lower costs of the stored electric charge than the gasoline. Moreover, the maintenance cost of an electric three-wheeler is also lesser than that of the diesel/gasoline powered vehicles and this further pushing their demand in the region.

Electric three-wheelers are either powered by sealed lead–acid (SLA) batteries or lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries. Of these two types of batteries, the SLA batteries registered higher sales in 2017, as they are cheaper. However, the li-ion batteries, owing to their rapidly reducing prices, are expected to record faster growth in usage in the APAC electric three-wheeler market in the near future. Additionally, the Li-ion batteries offer numerous advantages over the SLA batteries such as lighter weight, higher energy density, much lower environmental damage, and greater life span and thus, these batteries are observing soaring demand across the world.

 

The motors integrated in electric three-wheelers operating in APAC come in three power ratings: less than 1,000 watts, between 1,000 and 1,500 watts, and greater than 1,500 watts. Amongst these, electric three-wheelers equipped with motors having power in the range of 1,000—1,500 watts registered the highest sales in 2017. This is primarily ascribed to the operational cost benefits of the electric three-wheelers equipped with these motors. However, due to the rising need for high-speed electric three-wheelers, the demand for higher power motors will rise rapidly in future.

 

Therefore, it can be said with full surety that due to the rising need for eco-friendly modes of transportation and the presence of numerous government incentives supporting the adoption of electric vehicles in several APAC countries, the demand for electric three-wheelers will boom in the APAC region in the coming years.