A data released by the Union Ministry of Road Transport & Highways shows that around 1.8 lakh CNG vehicles were registered in the 2023 calendar year
The latest trend in the automotive market is that buyers are opting to go with CNG vehicles over the traditional petrol or diesel PVs at least in the affordable space and slightly higher up the ladder. A data released by the Union Ministry of Road Transport & Highways shows that around 1.8 lakh CNG vehicles were registered in the 2023 calendar year.
Compared to the previous term, the auto sector witnessed a massive YoY volume growth of 53 per cent. The CNG vehicles offer significant advantages over the regular petrol or diesel cars. Firstly, the fuel efficiency provided makes for an attractive proposition and although the price gap between petrol/diesel and CNG fuel has reduced in recent years, it is still a worthy consideration.
Moreover, the CNG vehicles are environmentally friendly and the availability of CNG stations has increased in recent times. Coupled with the lower ownership cost and many mainstream brands readily selling factory-fitted CNG cars with attractive warranty periods, customers see very little or no reason why the Compressed Natural Gas equipped cars should not be picked.
The cost difference between brand-fitted CNG and retrofitments has come down drastically as well. In March 2022, Maruti Suzuki achieved the ten lakh sales milestone within its CNG lineup and its portfolio only strengthened since then. Tata Motors recently launched the industry-first AMT variants of the Tiago and Tigor CNG models in India.
The Nexon CNG is expected to follow soon as the Nexon iCNG concept was showcased at the Bharat Mobility Global Expo 2024 in New Delhi earlier this month with an aim to compete with Maruti Suzuki’s S-CNG portfolio. There are also speculations that the upcoming Curvv midsize SUV coupe might also receive a CNG variant in the near future.
Besides Maruti Suzuki and Tata, Hyundai also has a strong presence in this segment as the i10 compact hatchback, Exter micro SUV and Aura CNG are sold with CNG variants. Maruti Suzuki and Toyota retail Grand Vitara and Urban Cruiser Hyryder respectively with CNG options as well in India.