According to a recent Counterpoint Research research, India is expected to overtake China as the world's largest two-wheeler (2W) market in 2024. The expected transition is being driven by India's healthy economic growth, a strong consumer preference for two-wheelers for short-distance commuting, and an increase in demand for two-wheelers in the shared mobility sector.

The electric two-wheeler (E2W) market is rapidly expanding, with sales penetration in 2024 expected to be 1.5 times that of four-wheeler passenger electric cars. Despite two-wheeler sales increasing by less than 1% year on year in 2023, the E2W market is predicted to expand significantly. Battery-powered two-wheelers are expected to account for more than a quarter of all sales by 2024.

Senior researcher Soumen Mandal stated that while the 2W industry is approaching maturity, electrification adoption is likely to increase rapidly, particularly after 2025. "Especially, Southeast Asian countries and India will witness mainstream adoption of E2Ws with a faster transition to EVs in these markets," he said.

Three of the top ten E2W brands are from India: Ola Electric, TVS Motor, and Ather Energy, highlighting the country's rising position in the E2W industry. Ola and Ather are also greenfield "EV-first" 2W startups competing with incumbents like as TVS, Hero, and Bajaj.

"In the premium 2W segment, we are seeing the entry of newer players such as Ultraviolet, Revolt Motors, Energica Motor, Damon, and ARC Vehicle to compete with Harley Davidson, Enfield, Yamaha, and others," as per the report.

The electric E2W share of global 2W sales will reach 44% by 2030, with total E2W sales exceeding 150 million units between 2024 and 2030, generating a global scale for the growing E2W value chain.

Vice President Neil Shah, "The 2W industry is evolving to include connection, much like the four-wheeler sector, particularly as electrification increases. Electrification entails ubiquitous wide area network connectivity, like 4G now or 5G RedCap in the future, along with related software and services," according to Shah. Overall semiconductor usage by 2Ws will rise to 15% by 2030."