Indian automakers Tata Motors and Mahindra have achieved a historic milestone by topping the world in electric vehicle energy efficiency, according to the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) Global Automaker Rating 2025. As reported by Rest of World, the study evaluated 22 of the world's largest automakers across 10 parameters, with Tata Motors leading the rankings at 106 Wh/km and Mahindra following at 113 Wh/km. This achievement places both Indian manufacturers ahead of established global leaders including Tesla and BYD, with Tesla ranking third at 120 Wh/km and BYD fourth at 121 Wh/km. The ICCT ratings looked at how efficiently carmakers use energy, their EV sales, and how green their manufacturing is, with both companies beating the global average for energy consumption.
The ICCT ranking shows that Tesla and BYD ranked third and fourth respectively, while the average energy consumption across leading EVs remained nearly unchanged year-on-year at 131 Wh/km in 2025. According to the ICCT assessment, this performance demonstrates the effectiveness of Indian engineering built specifically for Indian road conditions. Amit Bhatt, India Managing Director at ICCT, noted that it was encouraging to see India's EV transition being led by strong home-grown manufacturers, highlighting the growing global relevance of Indian automotive companies. Even though less than 5% of new cars sold in India are electric right now, this win puts Indian automakers on the global map with a government target of 30% EVs by 2030.
Former G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant celebrated this achievement on social media, stating that Indian automakers had topped the world in EV efficiency, not Tesla or BYD. As reported by Rest of World, the report noted that Mahindra featured in the rankings for the first time this year, reflecting the increasing representation of India's passenger vehicle market on the global stage. The efficiency gains are attributed to the compact nature of Indian EV models, such as the Tata Sierra EV and Mahindra BE 6, which typically carry smaller battery packs than larger EVs sold in markets like the US. Their secret lies in designing lighter, more efficient crossovers that focus on saving energy instead of chasing maximum performance.
The ICCT's global programme lead, Dale Hall, noted that the findings reflected a wider shift in the global automotive landscape, with electric vehicles accounting for 25% of new light-duty vehicle sales worldwide in 2025. According to the ICCT assessment, progressive and ambitious CAFE standards could help accelerate this momentum as India works towards its target of 30% EV sales by 2030. The report emphasizes that Tata and Mahindra's focus on affordable efficiency could help speed up the transition, demonstrating the global competitiveness of Indian automotive engineering and manufacturing capabilities.
