The country’s electric mobility transition can emerge not merely as a climate strategy, but as a critical instrument of energy security
Global supply chains and energy stability have been disrupted owing to the West Asia conflict. The disruption or potential blockade of the Strait of Hormuz underscores a structural vulnerability in India’s energy architecture. A significant share of India’s crude oil and LNG imports transit through this narrow maritime corridor, making the country acutely exposed to geopolitical shocks. Any sustained disruption not only tightens supply but also drives up global oil prices, inflating India’s import bill.
In this context, India’s electric mobility transition emerges as a critical instrument of energy security. Electrification of transport, especially in high-consumption segments such as two-wheelers, buses, and commercial freight, can significantly reduce the country’s reliance on imported fuels. India has already embarked on a path of scaling its renewable energy segment. As this capacity expands, the shift to EVs also allows India to increasingly power mobility through domestically generated electricity, thereby insulating itself from volatility in global oil markets.
Over the medium to long term, scaling EV adoption can deliver substantial macroeconomic gains, apart from aligning with India’s net-zero goals and improving the air quality, a subject which is increasingly gaining focus in Indian cities. Coupled with investments in domestic manufacturing of batteries and components, the EV transition can create a virtuous cycle. On one hand, it can enhance industrial capability, on the other it can generate employment, thus building resilience against external supply shocks. In an era of recurring geopolitical disruptions, electrification offers India a pathway to both economic stability and strategic autonomy.
The government has already moved ahead on this path and introduced handholding measures to support the EV industry. It has earlier earmarked significant allocation to two Production Linked Incentive (PLI) schemes – Automobiles and Auto Components and National Programme on Advanced Chemistry Cell (ACC) Battery Storage to boost production of futuristic technologies in this sector. Other schemes include the earlier introduced FAME scheme and the more recent PM-E Drive initiative.
Electric vehicles are perhaps India’s answer to strategic security and stability in this volatile geopolitical order. A recent study by Ember drives home this point. It argues that EVs are “price-competitive” and “replacing imported oil used in road transport with EVs would reduce importers' bills by over a third - around $600 billion per year.” It also places the second-largest lever in renewables, pointing out that they are able to reduce importers' bills by a fifth.
Fig 1: Workers assemble a car at the VinFast electric vehicle plant in Thoothukudi, in the southern
Indian state of Tamil Nadu, Monday, Aug. 4, 2025. (AP Photo/ Rafiq Maqbool)
The study notes that sceptics often argue that electrotech merely exchanges one dependency for another. However, the fact remains that a “solar panel, once installed, produces power for three decades with no fuel cost, no price increase or supply risk.”
“An EV, once bought, runs on domestic electricity, which can largely come 10 from local wind and solar. Fossil fuels require continuous imports. Every barrel, every cargo, every pipeline flow must be repeated, indefinitely.” it argues.
“Based on global EV sales, we calculate that electric vehicles displaced 1.7 million barrels per day of oil worldwide in 2025 – up from 1.3 million barrels in 2024 – not yet approaching the 20 million barrels per day of all oil demand that passes through the Strait of Hormuz, but still nearly as much as Iran's 2.4 million barrels per day of exports,” the study pointed out.
“Unlike the oil crises of the 1970s, there is now a better alternative,” said Daan Walter, a principal at global energy think tank Ember, adding that electric vehicles are increasingly cost-competitive with gasoline cars. “Oil volatility means EVs are a common-sense choice for countries wishing to insulate themselves from future shocks,” he added.
The study pointed out that across many countries – particularly emerging economies in Asia – rapid EV deployment is already slowing the growth of oil demand. The analysis shows that 39 countries now have an EV sales share “above 10%, up from just four in 2019.”
“Last year, Vietnam (38%) was ahead of the EU (26%), Thailand (21%) and Indonesia (15%) outpaced the US (10%), while India (4%) and Brazil (9%) recorded higher shares than Japan (3%). China reached over 50% EV sales share for the first time in 2025,” it said.
It also notes that the cost savings due to ratcheting up this segment is also very significant. “With oil at $80 per barrel, China saves over $28 billion a year in avoided oil imports through its current fleet of EVs alone; Europe about $8 billion and India $0.6 billion per year,” it added. The growing disruption of oil supply – and demand – highlights how scaling renewables and electrification could reshape global energy security in the coming decade.
About the Author
