Yamaha Motor, the last of the three mass-market Japanese two-wheeler OEMs to enter the Indian electric two-wheeler market, has begun sales of its EC-06 electric scooter. Yamaha despatched 92 units of the River Indie-based EC-06 in February 2026, its first month of sales.
- EC-06 available in limited cities across India currently
- It costs significantly more than the River Indie it is based upon
- Japanese EV sales off to a slow start owing to higher pricing
Yamaha EC-06 sales begin in India
EC-06 based on Indie, manufactured by River at its Hoskote plant.
The Yamaha EC-06 was revealed late last year at the launch event of the long overdue XSR155. The EC-06 is the first product from the partnership between Yamaha and Indian startup, River. It is based on the Indie electric scooter with some revisions to its bodywork, feature set and charging time. Early January is when River began production of the EC-06 at its plant in Hoskote, Karnataka. Then a month later, Yamaha launched the EC-06 at Rs 1.68 lakh (ex-showroom, Delhi) and made it available in select cities through Yamaha’s premium Blue Square showrooms. This - in all likelihood - explains the slow double-digit dispatches last month. Going forward, as Yamaha expands the availability of the EC-06, sales could rise for the premium Indo-Japanese EV.
Common to the Yamaha EC-06 and the River Indie are the 4kWh battery, a motor rated for peak of 6.7kW (9hp) and maximum torque of 26Nm. What’s different is the EC-06’s 79kph top speed compared to the River Indie’s 90kph, and a range of 169km versus the Indie’s 163km on a single charge. Under-seat storage is a relatively modest 24.5 litres compared to the Indie’s cavernous 43 litres.
At Rs 1.68 lakh, the Yamaha EC-06 costs Rs 22,000 more than the River Indie (Rs 1.46 lakh, ex-showroom Delhi) which is currently sold in nearly 40 cities across Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Gujarat and Rajasthan. In February, River Mobility delivered 2,303 units of the Indie, as per Vahan stats.
Japanese brands sell 824 electric scooters in February
Compared to the Indian legacy players which are frontrunners in the EV market - like TVS Motor Co, Bajaj Auto and Hero MotoCorp - the Japanese have been rather late in entering this segment. February 2026 is the first month to have all the three major Japanese two-wheeler OEMs in the fray. Combined sales of Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India, Suzuki Motorcycle India and India Yamaha Motor in February 2026, according to apex industry body SIAM, were 824 units. In comparison, TVS-Bajaj-Hero combined registered wholesales of 80,378 units.
Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India, which launched its Activa e: and QC1 in February 2025, did not produce a single unit or dispatch a single EV to its showrooms last month. As a result, its cumulative 11-month FY2026 sales are 2,783 units and total sales since launch stands at 5,445 units.
Suzuki Motorcycle India, which commenced sale of its e-Access in January this year with 703 units, has manufactured 2,136 units till end-February. It registered factory despatches of 732 units which takes its two-month total to 1,435 units. Customer deliveries in January-February are 534 units.
Like Yamaha, which sold 93 units of the EC-06s in its first month, the slower-than-expected offtake of the premium Suzuki e-Access can be attributed to its stiff pricing. At Rs 1.88 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi), the e-Access costs substantially more than the top two bestselling e-2Ws in India.
In a market where demand remains strong for affordable electric two-wheelers, it remains to be seen whether Yamaha’s premium-pricing strategy clicks with the value-conscious EV buyer. Aside from the co-developed EC-06, Yamaha also has another EV in the offing for India, the self-developed Aerox-E. This will be manufactured by Yamaha in India and is in line with its premium strategy for the ASEAN region and emerging markets.
In FY2025, India Yamaha Motor (2,95,728 units) was the fourth largest two-wheeler exporter after Bajaj, TVS and Honda. In the first 11 months of FY2026, IYM has already exported 3,18,030 bikes and scooters, up 19 percent YoY. The EC-06 and Aerox-E could soon join the list of made-in-India Yamaha two-wheelers to be shipped overseas.
Ved Janve
Vishal Venugopal
Dinshaw Magol
