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Country's largest two-wheeler manufacturer, Hero MotoCorp has further delayed the launch of its electric vehicle (EV) to the festive season, instead of next month, owing to the supply chain issue worldwide.
"The ongoing geopolitical situation has resulted in enormous supply chain issues and shortage of various components, including semiconductors. Keeping customers as the top-most priority, we, therefore, feel it would be prudent to unveil the first EV product around the upcoming festive period instead of July as earlier announced. We are accordingly gearing up for the launch of Vida – powered by Hero – in the festive season," Swadesh Srivastava, Head of Emerging Mobility Business Unit (EMBU), Hero MotoCorp said in a statement.
The company had launched Vida as its EV brand in March. The first dateline for the EV launch was also in March, which the company postponed to July 1.
"In line with our philosophy of providing the highest quality products to our customers, we remain committed to bringing the best of EVs for our customers across the globe," Srivastava said.
Improving sentiment
Meanwhile, the company reported a growth of 192 per cent year-on-year (YoY) in its domestic wholesale (dispatches to dealers) to 4,66,466 units in May as compared with 1,59,561 in May 2021. The low base was due to the Covid restrictions around same month last year.
Volumes in May indicate the continuously improving consumer sentiment and the company expects the positive trend to continue in the coming months, on the back of normal monsoon, decent Rabi harvest and continued government policy support, Hero MotoCorp said.
The company also said it welcomes the recent decision of the government to reduce the central excise duty on petrol and diesel, which has substantially brought down fuel costs, thereby providing a much-needed relief to motorcycle and scooter users in the country.
"We also welcome the steps taken to cut duties on iron and steel inputs, which should help in softening steel prices in the domestic market," Vikram Kasbekar, Executive Director, Hero MotoCorp, said.
However, the increase in the third-party insurance rates would, adversely impact customer sentiments at a time when the industry has just started to recover, as this will further increase the upfront costs of two-wheelers in India, he said.
"It is not usual to have insurance paid for three to five years instead of annual renewals, as is generally the case in many countries. The industry seeks government intervention and support in this regard. The two-wheeler industry provides employment to millions of people, thereby playing the role of an income enabler in the economic growth of the country and we need to continue to support its revival and growth," he added.
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