Sales of CNG Cars Have Grown an Impressive 46%

Indian car buyers, opting for CNG-powered passenger cars, are also reflecting on this massive growth in sales in the first eight months of 2024. In contrast, sales of petrol and diesel models declined by 4.5 per cent each, while diesel vehicles saw a meagre 5% hike. CNG vehicles now represent approximately 30% of petrol vehicle sales, with Maruti Suzuki India reporting that one in three cars it produces is a CNG model, indicating a CNG penetration rate of 34% within its overall portfolio. 

This includes the introduction of new models by OEMs, an increased number of CNG refueling stations across places, and all the newness like the latest twin-cylinder system provided by Tata Motors, are driving this boom for adopting CNG as a fuel. Most OEMs concentrate on cleaner fuels to meet the CAFÉ standards to reduce carbon dioxide emissions. 

Rahul Bharti, Executive Director Corporate Affairs, Maruti Suzuki said that CNG is over 90% methane, hence it has four hydrogen atoms for every carbon atom, making it inherently clean. He also said that phasing out pure petrol and diesel is imperative and desirable. 

Ravi Bhatia, CEO of Jato Dynamics, said alternative fuels were the future as global electric vehicle growth was held back. CNG sales registered a 46 percent rise, and hybrid sales a 19 percent increase. Electric vehicles accelerated only by 7 percent. This, he said is how consumer preference has shifted, and CNG has especially been affordable in the taxi segment and small businesses.”. 

In the first quarter of this financial year, sales of diesel-powered vehicles showed a decline while there was increase in the sales of CNG PV vehicles. Rajasthan, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu have led the way in terms of CNG uptake as the top consuming states. Tata Motors with its Nexon iCNG and Hyundai with its dual-cylinder version of the Grand i10 NIOS are the kinds of offerings by carmakers that indicate a much larger market response to consumer demand. The market witnessed that the volume of available car models has risen to this year compared to last year, which offered only 13 models. CNG variants are now introduced in mid-level models, which were not available in the earlier versions; it would accept only entry-level options. This also helped improve the fueling infrastructure from 3,180 stations in June 2021 to 6,959 by June 2024. 

The comparative difference between the costs of liquid petroleum and CNG fuels is the primary reason why petrol is being sold at Rs 94.72 per liter and CNG at Rs 75.09 per kilogram in Delhi, and this a primary reason why CNG vehicles are more in demand these days as commercial taxi operators and small business people prefer it.