Tata Motors' electric car bookings triple amid production constraints capping deliveries

Tata Motors' passenger electric vehicle bookings have grown threefold over the last six months, even as limited production capacity has been restricting the auto company's ability to fully capitalise on the strong demand. With this demand momentum, Tata Motors is expecting to post a strong sales performance in the festive quarter.

In an interaction with PTI, Tata Passenger Electric Mobility Ltd (TPEML), which is a part of the Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles Ltd Group, the automaker's Chief Commercial Officer Vivek Srivatsa said, “If you see the last 2-3 months, we are actually gaining market share every month. So it is the other way round, and in fact, in the last six months, the gap between the number two player and us has increased. And I would also publicly state that we had 3X growth in bookings for EVs, and we are only restricted by our production capability."

Srivatsa also said that he believes consumers are increasingly becoming confident of the company's products, and it has the widest product range, providing EVs to all kinds of different use cases. The automaker is also expecting a strong festive season, with Srivatsa saying the current momentum could help the industry post its best performance in the September-December period. “I think the trends are very positive. You know, if you look at Q1, I think the industry had never before seen growth close to 46% YoY," he said, while also adding, “EVs have grown even faster, 77% YoY growth, and if I look at July and August, the momentum seems to continue, and that means the festive season, indications are that it's going to be extremely positive, quite likely to be the largest quarter for the industry."

However, he acknowledged that the industry's YoY growth rate could moderate from the end of September as the base effect kicks in, even though absolute sales could remain strong. "In terms of percentage growth, we might taper off, but actual numbers would still probably be extremely high," he said.

The demand momentum in the Indian auto industry has persisted nearly a year after the government's GST 2.0 reforms came into effect on September 22, 2025. Under the revised GST regime, electric vehicles continue to attract 5% GST, while on small cars it was reduced to 18% from 28%. The GST rate on larger cars was rationalised to 40% without compensation cess. According to the Tata official, the impact of GST rationalisation continues to support vehicle affordability, while new launches have expanded consumer choice. "Yeah, I think the GST 2.0 impact is continuing even now, close to a year after it was launched. Consumers are still seeing benefits. Added to that, I think product launches have added a lot of options for consumers. That is what is going to power the festive season," he said.

The strong outlook for the festive season comes despite recent price hikes announced by automakers, including Tata Passenger Electric Mobility. The auto company is set to raise car prices in September. However, Srivatsa said he did not expect the move to materially affect festive-season demand, while the impact beyond the festive period would need to be monitored. "I think price hikes have been fairly recent. We are taking a price hike in September. I would say that the price hike should not affect the festive season, but longer term, what happens after the festive season is something we'll have to watch out for," he said.

Srivatsa attributed the broader demand momentum to factors beyond GST, including a growing consumer preference for alternative-fuel vehicles following the West Asia crisis and changing mobility preferences among Indian consumers. "GST has made cars more accessible and also increased EV adoption or alternate fuel adoption, especially after the West Asia crisis, which is also pushing customers to look at alternate fuel options. On the softer side, if you see behaviourally, I think Indian consumers are more and more aligned towards on-road travel with their families," he said.

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