As the petrol and diesel prices rallied all-time high in the last fiscal year, vehicle buyers shifted from traditional fuel to alternate fuels like compressed natural gas (CNG).
Despite a fall in overall sales of passenger vehicles by 2.20% in FY21, the sales of CNG vehicles rose by 57%, according to the top executive of a leading car manufacturer.
India’s largest car manufacturer - Maruti Suzuki, which accounts for 90% of the total CNG vehicle sales, has reported the highest ever sales at 157,964 units of factory-fitted S-CNG vehicles in FY21. The carmaker last year sold about 106,444 units, rising by 50%
Shashank Srivastava, Executive Director, Sales & Marketing, Maruti Suzuki said, “As the gap between petrol and diesel price is narrowing, consumers are opting for CNG cars. There are cities like Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru where the price gap is INR5, but there are few cities where the gap is INR10.”
On the other hand, diesel contribution to the overall sales of passenger vehicles have gone down to 17% from 30% earlier, he added.
Maruti Suzuki has about right models, namely Alto, Celerio, Wagon-R, S-PRESSO, Eeco, Ertiga, Tour S, and Super Carry with factory CNG fitted engines. It is further planning to expand this technology to other models in the portfolio.
Srivastava said, “We see CNG as a technology that has set a new benchmark in green fuel mobility. Maruti Suzuki offers its customers the widest options of factory-fitted CNG-powered cars. With the government’s clear focus on the expansion of CNG outlets in the country, we are confident of greater acceptance of factory-fitted CNG vehicles, even in challenging times.”
The Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas and the gas industry are working aggressively on expanding CNG stations across the entire country. Despite a complete lockdown in the initial months of FY2020- 21, more than 700 stations have been added last year alone, a growth of more than 50%.
This rate of network expansion will aid the demand for CNG vehicles. At present, there are more than 2,800 CNG stations across the country, which are likely to cross 10,000 numbers over the next seven to eight years.
Apart from Maruti Suzuki, carmakers like Hyundai, Tata Motors and Honda Cars also offer factory-fitted CNG cars.