Maruti Suzuki targets 9 lakh CNG sales as fuel costs lift demand

MUMBAI: When fuel prices climb, drivers often change gears and Maruti Suzuki wants to be waiting in the next lane. India’s largest carmaker is aiming to sell around 9 lakh CNG vehicles in the current financial year, riding a surge in demand as higher fuel prices following the West Asia war push more buyers towards lower running-cost alternatives.

Speaking to PTI, Maruti Suzuki India Senior Executive Officer (Marketing & Sales) Partho Banerjee said the company sold 2.2 lakh CNG vehicles during the April-June quarter, marking a robust 58 per cent year-on-year increase across its portfolio.

Banerjee attributed the strong momentum to rising fuel prices in the aftermath of the West Asia conflict, which have prompted more customers to opt for compressed natural gas-powered vehicles. Based on the performance in the first quarter, the company expects CNG sales to reach around 9 lakh units in FY27, an increase of nearly 30 per cent over the previous financial year.

Maruti Suzuki currently offers 15 CNG models in India, including light commercial vehicles, and sold more than 7 lakh CNG vehicles in FY26.

The company is also witnessing a shift in buying patterns, with demand extending beyond entry-level hatchbacks and vans to larger utility vehicles.

Banerjee said more than half of the sales of the CNG variant of the Victoris SUV now come from the version equipped with an underbody CNG tank, a design that preserves luggage space while improving practicality. Encouraged by the response, the automaker has introduced the same underbody CNG configuration in the recently launched Brezza S-CNG.

The new Brezza S-CNG comes equipped with idle start-stop technology, a six-speed manual transmission, and delivers a claimed fuel efficiency of 26.9 km/kg.

The growing appetite for cleaner and more economical mobility is already visible in the company’s monthly sales mix. Last month, CNG vehicles accounted for 42 per cent of Maruti Suzuki India’s overall sales, underlining how the fuel option has evolved from a budget choice into a mainstream pillar of the automaker’s business.

As fuel costs remain volatile and consumers continue to prioritise lower running expenses, Maruti Suzuki is betting that CNG will remain one of the strongest growth engines in India’s passenger vehicle market.