E2Ws on a brake: Serial fires, chip shortage may slow the pace of growth

Is the electric two-wheeler (E2W) juggernaut slowing down after a year of fast-paced sales growth? There is no doubt that the business faces a double whammy. On the one hand, three E2W makers have been forced to recall over 6,700 scooters after several of them caught fire, attracting government inquiries. On the other hand, the Ukraine-Russia war has ended hopes that the component and chip shortage would be over soon. Many project the shortage to last till 2023.

April saw the first month-on-month drop in registrations, after a 58 per cent jump in March. In Feb­ru­ary, registrations were up 15