• There were no electric vehicles in Pakistan as of 2018 and all of the vehicles depend on the use of fossil fuels. Since there are no electric vehicles, it implies that there are no electric tuk-tuks in the country as well and their absence also means that there are no manufacturers in the country.
• Although the number currently stands at zero, the government is taking measures and has set targets of introducing 100,000 electric cars as well as 500,000 two-, three-, and four-wheeled electric vehicles in the next 5 years.
• The total number of tuk-tuks (non-electric) in the country is not available. There were 105,684 registered rickshaws in the largest metropolitan city in Pakistan, Karachi, as of December 31, 2011. The number of unregistered rickshaws may be higher.
• The total number of private rickshaws in Lahore, one of the largest cities in Pakistan, is close to 500,000. Faisalabad, which is another large city in the country, has close to 70,000 motorcycle rickshaws, also known as 'Qingqis'.
• Three-wheeler sales in the country were 156,497 units in June 2018, which rose from 129,342 units in June 2017.

Research Strategy

Total number of tuk-tuks in Sri Lanka

• There are between 1.1 and 1.2 million registered non-electric tuk-tuks in Sri Lanka. However, only half of them are available for hire. The first electric tuk-tuk three-wheeler launched in the country is the Mahindra Treo, which is manufactured by Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd.

Number of electric tuk-tuks

• The minister of development strategies and international trade, Malik Samarawickrama, launched Sri Lanka's first-ever electric three-wheeler tuk-tuks in March 2019. As the product is still new, there is no report available on the sales or number of lease of these electric tuk-tuks.

The lifespan of Electric Tuk-Tuks

• The Mahindra Treo electric tuk-tuk uses lithium-ion battery that has a lifespan of five years.
• The tuk-tuk can travel up to 130 kilometers per full charge.

Top Manufacturers of Electric Tuk-Tuks

• The Mahindra Treo electric tuk-tuk is the first-ever electric tuk-tuk on three wheels launched in Sri Lanka. It is manufactured by Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd.

Electric Conversion Kit

• Sasiranga De Silva, an Automobile Engineer and a lecturer at the Department of Mechanical Engineering, University of Moratuwa, has recently invented electric conversion kits for tuk-tuks. His initiative is supported by the UN Environment.
• The conversion kit uses a lithium-ion battery that has a lifespan of five years.

Government Programs Supporting Electric Tuk-Tuks

• The government is offering a low-interest rate loan to drivers to convert their tuk-tuks into electronic tuk-tuks.
• Sri Lanka's diesel and petrol vehicles have a higher tax rate. With the introduction of electronic tuk-tuks for rental, switching to hybrids and electric vehicles make more sense for tuk-tuk drivers in the long run.
• The government targets to convert the country's entire tuk-tuk fleet to electronic tuk-tuk by 2045 

Research Strategy

Number of Tuk-Tuks in Thailand

• According to a CNBC report, Thailand has about 20,000 non-electric tuks in operation.
• In June 2017, the Department of Land Transport approved the introduction of 450 electric tuk-tuks to Chiang Mai by Nakorn Lanna Cooperative.
•  Michel Hublet, the founder and owner of Tuk factory, said the company is developing 100 e-tuks for resorts & hotels and another 450 e-tuks in Chiang Mai.
• According to the Bangkok Post, the number of electric tuk-tuks in operation in Thailand is 58.

The lifespan of Electric Tuk-Tuks

• The lifespan of electric tuk-tuks is dependent on the brands, battery cell type, and make. The different makes ranges from Classico, Limo, Cargo, and Vendo.
• For e-tuk Classico, the lead-acid battery has a lifespan of three years/60.000 km while the Lithium battery has a lifespan of 3 years/100.000 km.
• The electric tuk Limo, Cargo, and Vendo have the same lifespan for the different battery types.

Top Manufacturers of Electric Tuk-Tuks

• Giving the penetration rate of electric tuk-tuks in the country, E-Tuk Factory is the only manufacturers of an electric tuk-tuk in Thailand.
• The company has been exporting e-tuks since 2011 with over 800 e-tuks sold. They are the first company in the world to design and manufacture a 100% electric auto rickshaw.
• In terms of brands, in June 2019, "Grabs has partnered with Nakorn Lanna Cooperative to launch GrabTukTuk Electric service in Chiang Mai." This will make the brand the most popular e-tuks brand in Thailand.

Government Programs Supporting E-tuks

•  Energy policymakers in the country are promoting the commercial launch of e-tuks by offering 106 million THB subsidy to motivate tuk-tuk owners to move from liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) to EV.
• The subsidy is from the Energy Conservation Fund (ECF) which will be offered to the first 100 tuk owners to switch to e-tuk with the first ten people to get 100% subsidy, and the remaining 90 people would receive 85% subsidy.
•  Thawarat Suttabutra, the Director of the Energy Policy and Planning Office, opined that the Thailand government has a five years plan to turn all tuks in Thailand to e-tuks.
• In 2017, the ECF approved 120 million THB for the construction of 150 new EV charging units in the city of Bangkok and its surroundings with 79 already operational.

1) Total number of tuk-tuks (including electric and non-electric):

• According to CEIC, there were about 10,760,000 units of auto-rickshaws registered in Bangladesh as of December 2017.

2) Number of electric tuk-tuks:

• According to a report published by Ernst & Young, there are about 500,000 e-rickshaws in Bangladesh.

3) Lifespan of electric tuk-tuks:

• According to a paper published by the International Journal of Engineering Research & Technology (IJERT), the average economic service life of e-rickshaws in Bangladesh is 3 years. 

4) Players (manufacturers/brands) of electric tuk-tuks in the country:

• Dezhou Zhongya Vehicle Industry
• Xinxiang Siristar Import & Export
• Henan Zip Star Motor Tricycle Manufacturing
• Sichuan Hanfeiyuntu Int'l Trading
• Guangzhou City Panyu Dengfeng Motorcycle Spare Parts Factory
• Zhengzhou Lianke Machinery Manufacture
• Tianjin City Baoge Electric Bicycle
• Xuzhou Furinkazan Import & Export Trade
• Sichuan Minghong Vehicle Manufacturing
• Zhengzhou Lianke Machinery Manufacture

5) Government programs supporting electric tuk-tuks in the country:

• In 2019, the Bangladesh Road Transport Authority (BRTA) issued draft guidelines on electric vehicles, making registration, fitness certificates and tax tokens mandatory.
• The government of Bangladesh has been promoting various electric two-wheel and three-wheel vehicles by offering tax exemptions.
• In 2019, the government of Bangladesh moved to legalize about 100,000 electric three-wheel vehicles which are currently operating on its rural roads.
• However, battery-run rickshaws and bicycles are not a part of the new move. 
• The government of Bangladesh has established 8 solar charging stations across the country.

Research Strategy:

Government Programs

• The Indian government, through the Department of Heavy Industries (DHI), which is under the Ministry of Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises, launched a program called FAME II (Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles) in March 2019 to boost the transition to electric mobility.
• The purpose of this program is to increase the manufacturing and adoption of electric vehicles including electric tuk-tuks in India. The program also aims on increasing the charging infrastructure in the country. The Indian government launched this program to tackle air pollution.
• The government is hopping that by 2023, all internal combustion engine-based three wheelers could be phased out. The Ministry of Finance will to spend about Rs4,000 crore ($600 million) over the coming five years to upgrade the country’s charging infrastructure.
• Additionally, the government has proposed that 50% of parts used to make these electric vehicles must be sourced locally. The purpose of this is to support local manufacturers.
• Since the government of India is the one sponsoring/funding this program, it is using 86% of these funds to reduce the cost of EV including the three-wheelers. The total fund allocation for the program is ₹10,000 crores ($1.4 billion).
• The government has also reduced the tax on EVs from 12% to 5%. This move is to encourage many people to buy EVs which include electric rickshaws/tuk-tuks. It has also reduced the tax rates from 18% to 5% for chargers and charging stations.
• Large Indian EV companies are working with the government to offer their e-tuk-tuks the last mile connectivity from metro stations. The government has to provide the parking space and charging infrastructure. Kinetic Green and SmartE companies have already been given this last mile connectivity from few metro stations.
• In 2017, the government procured 25,000 electric rickshaws through a state-owned Energy Efficiency Services (EESL) and leased them out to aggregators, who deployed them in the market.
• To encourage the purchase of non-polluting vehicles, the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways excluded battery operating vehicles (including e-tuk-tuks) from paying registration fees. It's also planning on reducing the price of purchasing e-rickshaws so that the low income earners can afford it.

Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd Overview

• The estimated revenue of M&M is ‎₹105,806 crore (US$15 billion).
• The electric tut-tuks models manufactured and produced by M&M are e-Alfa Mini & Treo.
• The price of e-Alfa Mini is Rs. 1.12 lakh (US$1,564.89), while the price for Treo is Rs. 1.77 lakh (US$1,634.75) for Treo Yaati SHT and Rs. 2.77 lakh (US$3,171.71) for Treo SHT. (1 Lakh =100,000 R; 1 INR = 0.01397 USD)
• Last month, October 2019, M&M sold about 2,000 electric vehicle, these were the e-Verito electric sedan and the e-Alfa Mini & Treo electric three-wheelers. Out of these 2,000 units sold, 1,300 units were e-Alfa Mini, 600 units were Treo, and the remaining were e-Verito.
• Therefore, the total number of electric tuk-tuks sold by M&M in October was (1,300 + 600) about 1,900.

Kinetic Engineering Ltd

• The 2019 revenue of Kinetic Engineering Ltd is estimated to be US$1.15 billion.
• Kinetic Engineering is one of India's premier automotive parts manufactures.

Research Strategy