Apollo Tyres on Monday said the company expects electric vehicles (EV) adoption to pick up pace over the next few years and is gearing up to cater to demand in passenger vehicle (PV) as well as two-wheeler segments, from both original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and after sales.
The two-wheeler EV tyres volume is around 30,000 units every month in the after sales market and is expected to grow in the near future, Satish Sharma, President (Asia Pacific Middle East and Africa), told BusinessLine
He said the company has already teamed with Hero Electric as the OEM partner for electric scooters and is in talks with other manufacturers for the same. The company will launch electric motorcycle tyres in the future, once the market flourishes.
“The vehicle weight substantially increases for the EVs because of the battery and the tyres used now are standard tyres.....We are looking at a lion’s share, upwards of 30 per cent for PV and for two-wheelers,” Sharma said.
The company unveiled Apollo Amperion range of tyres for the PV segment, and Apollo Wav range for two-wheelers.
The Amperion will cater to the EVs in hatchback, compact SUV and sedan segments in India like the Tata Nexon, MG ZSEV, Hyundai Kona and other upcoming EVs. It has received fuel savings label with five-star rating for the PV category from the Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE). Similarly, Wav will cater to the majority of high powered electric scooters like the TVS iQube, Bajaj Chetak and Ather 450.
“Our products are born electric now so more partnerships will happen. Anyone who comes with an EV, we are in the queue and ahead of the curve and more than willing to partner (whether Maruti Suzuki’s EV in 2025 and upcoming Hero MotoCorp’s Vida brand of EVs),” he said.
For the luxury car segment, the company would start manufacturing in a year’s time for the export markets with its ‘Vredestein’ brand, as demand for them will increase with companies like Audi, BMW and Mercedes-Benz launching more products.
With the growing EV market, other tyre majors brands like JK Tyre also recently launched the complete range of EV specific smart radial tyres for all categories of buses, truck, light commercial vehicles and passenger cars in India.