electric vehicles: EV growth may slow down as safety norms are tightened

The surging sales growth of electric vehicles (EVs), especially in the two- and three-wheeler categories that have seen several launches lately, may slow as safety norms are tightened following four recent fires involving such bikes. Government-appointed testing agencies are understood to be tweaking parameters for such vehicles, especially to avoid the lithium ion batteries overheating and going up in flames.

The government has already prescribed the toughest benchmark for EVs.

“India has the world’s stringent testing standard, AIS 156, which includes the fire resistance test where the battery is subject to a direct and indirect flame for over two minutes,” said Niti Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant. “Manufacturers voluntarily ensure that all of their batteries are certified as per this standard.”

The country is also working with the United Nations on the new R136 standard and testing of batteries among the subjects being discussed. “We may see these being adopted in India soon, once they are released,” said Kant.

AIS 156 may be more suited for European climatic conditions rather than the high temperatures in India, said Hero Electric CEO Sohinder Gill.

“There would certainly be delays in new electric vehicle product launches but this would only ensure safer products being rolled out to customers. India needs new certification standards that take care of battery chemistry and design,” said Gill, also director general of the Society of Manufacturers of Electric Vehicles (SMEV).

“Testing agencies need to do accelerated degradation testing on how batteries degrade in two-three years,” said Venkat Rajaraman, CEO of lithium ion battery pack maker Cygni Energy.



Lithium Highly Inflammable
Experts said lithium, which is predominantly used in EV batteries, is highly inflammable.

“The battery management system needs to be recalibrated to take control of the quality of the batteries. The issues on hand are extremely critical and the whole industry should come together to find the right way ahead, so that customer safety is never compromised,” said a top executive at an electric scooter company.

The Automotive Research Association of India (ARAI) and the International Centre for Automotive Technology (ICAT), both government testing laboratories, didn’t respond to queries.

The Centre for Fire, Explosive and Environment Safety, part of Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO), and the Indian Institute of Science (IISc), Bangalore, are investigating the four incidents and will take appropriate action against manufacturers, road transport and highways minister Nitin Gadkari said recently.

Batteries could be over-strained because of faster charging times and greater density as well as the drive to keep weight down, said manufacturers of the cells. Technically, the powertrain in EVs is robust and simple, but the battery needs special attention, they said, adding that the problem arises when battery manufacture and operation are not well regulated. Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) should watch out for this.

“Almost all lithium ion cells are imported, hence testing of each and every cell during assembly has to be ascertained,” Kant said. “The battery management system needs to be strengthened and industry (battery and vehicle OEMs) should come together to define the minimum parameters and self-declare the adherence.”

To minimise fire risk and keep consumer confidence intact, EV makers should recall models involved in such incidents till they sort out battery-related issues, said experts.

“OEMs (auto and battery) dealing with such issues generally recall the vehicles pertaining to the batch affected with such issues to ensure that any issue is fixed timely without loss of life and property,” said Kant.

Manufacturers feel that since India is a price-sensitive market, the nascent category may not be able to support the increased costs of active cooling solutions, which are used more commonly in electric passenger vehicles. The challenge for two- and three-wheelers is the lack of space to install a cooling system. Experts said that battery swapping, which allows it to cool down while being charged outside the vehicle, might be a better solution for India.