High costs, charging difficulties seen slowing sales
Automakers launch schemes to lure buyers
MG Motor offers battery rental service
Price of one Tata Motors model cut by a fifth

NEW DELHI, Sept 12 Reuters India39;s top electric vehicle maker, Tata Motors, is luring consumers with free charging and steep discounts, while rival MG Motor has launched its first battery rental plan, in strategies aimed at propping up sales of the clean cars.

Use of electric vehicles EVs has grown rapidly in recent years to account for 2 of India39;s annual sales of 4.2 million cars, but sales growth is now faltering, which analysts blame on high prices and lack of charging facilities.

We want to make electric vehicles affordable, Satinder Singh Bajwa, chief commercial officer of MG Motor, said at an event to launch the firm39;s new EV with a battery rental service, the world39;s first of its kind.

You are paying for the usage of the battery as you pay for the fuel, Bajwa added, as the firm, a joint venture of India39;s JSW Group and China39;s SAIC, attempts to make one of the cars39; most expensive components affordable for buyers.

The BatteryasaService plan will effectively cost 3.5 rupees 4 U.S. cents a km, though customers will need to pay for a monthly minimum of 1,500 km 932 miles in the scramble to ensure a low initial acquisition cost.

That kind of effort is sorely needed.

For example, India39;s biggest EV maker, Tata Motors sold just 4,086 EVs in August, down nearly 15…