Let’s cut straight to the chase – in three months the Kona Electric has received more than 300 bookings from India. Simple math reveals that Hyundai Motor India has bagged an average of 100 bookings every month. Out of the lot, over 150 units have found their customers already. Some might say that those numbers are not promising at all. However, when you rope in some of the following facts, the picture suddenly looks brighter. Digest these before making a judgement:

• The EV is on sale in just 11 cities across India.
• The starting price is Rs 23.72 lakh (ex-showroom). The dual-tone version costs Rs 23.91 lakh.
• Courtesy of a GST reduction in August this year, the price mentioned above came down from Rs 25.3 lakh.
• Even with the higher price tag, the Kona Electric bagged 120 bookings in just ten days.

No matter how you look at those facts, the Kona Electric has done better than initial expectations. And the story doesn’t end there! EESL (Energy Efficiency Services Limited), which is a state-run organisation, has also placed an order of ten Kona Electrics. Hyundai has already delivered four out of them. Again, the numbers are not that high but considering a government entity is taking interest makes the whole picture a comfier one for the South Korean carmaker.

The Kona Electric comes to India via the CKD (Completely Knocked Down) route. To keep the asking price as low as possible, Hyundai offers the smaller of the two powertrains available globally. A single electric motor, which produces 134bhp/395Nm, is backed by a 39.2 kWh battery pack. According to ARAI, the maximum range is 452km on a single charge. Hyundai claims that with a recommended fast charger, the Kona Electric can replenish its battery pack from zero to 80 per cent in less than an hour.

India’s EV scene, especially in the passenger vehicle space, is tiny at the moment. Apart from Hyundai’s offering, the only other alternatives are the Mahindra eVerito and the Tata Tigor EV. The latter’s recipe recently received an upgrade featuring a 33 per cent larger battery, which has resulted in a 50 per cent jump in the claimed range. What’s more, the Tigor EV is now also available for personal use.

More EVs are inbound. The list includes MG Motor India’s ZS EV and the Tata Nexon EV (featuring Ziptron tech). Both those models should get a price list before we enter the next financial year. Other zero-emission models in the pipeline are the Mahindra XUV300 Electric, Maruti Suzuki WagonR EV and the Tata Altroz EV.