Maruti Suzuki ceased production and sales of diesel vehicles prior to the transition to BSVI emission norms in April 2020. In FY18, the company achieved record-breaking sales of diesel vehicles, with approximately 480,000 units sold. While diesel vehicles still account for about 17.8% of passenger vehicle sales in the domestic market, the company has decided to refrain from this segment and instead introduce more CNG and strong hybrid powertrain vehicles for its customers.
“As emission norms become more stringent, the cost of making diesel vehicles compliant will significantly increase. From an economic standpoint, diesel vehicles no longer make sense,” said Shashank Srivastava, senior executive officer (marketing and sales) at Maruti Suzuki India. He added that in the short term, the company will focus on increasing production and sales of CNG vehicles, as they offer a cost-effective solution.
In the current fiscal year, Maruti Suzuki aims to sell up to 450,000 CNG vehicles, compared to the 328,000 units sold in FY23. The company has also introduced two strong hybrid vehicles – the Grand Vitara and the Invicto – to cater to consumers in the premium end of the market. Combined sales of CNG and strong hybrid vehicles reached around 111,000 units in the last quarter.
Maruti Suzuki, which provides CNG options in 13 models, has witnessed a surge in demand for CNG vehicles following the government’s decision to rationalize natural gas prices earlier this year.
“We are experiencing strong demand for CNG vehicles, with CNG accounting for 26% of our total sales (compared to 20% in FY23),” informed Srivastava. The market share of CNG in overall sales of passenger vehicles in the industry is currently at 13%. Maruti Suzuki expects 25% of its sales to come from hybrid electric vehicles, 15% from EVs, and 60% from internal combustion engine (CNG, Biogas, Ethanol, Flex-fuel) vehicles by 2030. Many automakers, including Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai, and Tata Motors, have recognized CNG as an affordable option for the masses, particularly in the lower-end market, due to its lower running costs. Currently, CNG is priced at ₹73.59 per kg in Delhi and ₹79 in Mumbai, whereas petrol prices stand at ₹96.72 in Delhi and ₹106.31 in Mumbai as of Sunday. The government is also actively promoting CNG adoption in personal mobility to reduce crude imports.