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Scooters: CNG’s Next Bet?
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Good Morning. Compressed natural gas or CNG boomed in India as the country pushed for cheaper renewable energy sources. However, it has only stayed limited to commercial vehicles such as autos or rental cars, such as Ubers. So when Bajaj introduced a CNG bike, it failed to take off. Will TVS’s new CNG scooter change that?
India’s equity indices broke it’s six day winning streak on Tuesday. The BSE Sensex closed at 84,673.02, falling 277.93 points or 0.33%. The NSE Nifty50 closed at 25,910.05, losing 103.4 points or 0.4%.
In other news, could the large language model boom hit a wall? Meanwhile, on this week’s Build On Blockchain, how the technology could bring a change to global financial systems.
DECODE THE NEWS
CNG Motorcycle Didn’t Click. Can Scooters Change The Story?
What?
India’s CNG landscape has grown dramatically — from just 738 stations in 2014 to more than 8,000 today — but the fuel’s newest frontier, two-wheelers, remains a tough nut to crack.
Despite CNG’s appeal as a cleaner, cheaper fuel long used by autos and city cabs, consumer awareness remains low. In The Core’s online survey, 69% of respondents didn’t know a production-ready CNG two-wheeler even exists. This is despite Bajaj Auto launching the world’s first commercially produced CNG motorcycle, the Freedom 125, last year.
So far, uptake has been underwhelming. Bajaj dispatched 74,730 units in its first year, with a festive-season spike in October. Since then, monthly dispatches have slid to under 2,000. At its Q2 earnings call, CFO Dinesh Thapar said the company isn’t shelving the model but hinted at product tweaks instead.
Dealers say the bike appeals to value-seeking daily riders who clock 100 km a day — delivery workers, coaches, small business owners — but marketing remains weak, especially in the North. Industry insiders add that Bajaj’s push came as its entry-level lineup was struggling, and that the company has since doubled down on its Chetak EVs, where it’s seeing stronger traction.
Why?
CNG two-wheelers also face structural hurdles: limited refuelling points outside metros, higher maintenance costs, and only marginal savings for personal riders. A Crisil study shows petrol bikes still edge out CNG models for typical users, though high-mileage gig workers benefit more from CNG economics.
Analysts say scooters may offer a better runway than motorcycles, given their urban user base and city-focused CNG networks. But practical issues loom large — especially storage space, a key scooter USP. TVS and Suzuki have showcased CNG models, but neither has committed to a launch.
Experts expect CNG two-wheelers to remain a niche. The segment’s future will hinge on infrastructure expansion, policy support, and sharper economics that appeal beyond heavy users.
BUILD ON BLOCKCHAIN
After Long Courtship, Global Finance is Now Ready To Tie The Knot With Blockchain
What?
The financial world is preparing for a transformation. Last week at a fintech conference in Hong Kong, Standard Chartered CEO Bill Winters said that most global transactions will eventually run on blockchains.
Much of the work is technical, but it is changing how money moves between two parties and across borders.
In fact, some transactions have already started happening on the blockchain, and banks and regulators have been preparing for this shift for a while.
In this case, the change may not be obvious to ordinary banking customers. But this gradual upgrade, happening across different parts of the financial system, will make sure that their money is in safer hands.
Why It Matters
The biggest change because of blockchain is not the coin or the token itself. The change lies in the path money takes.
Today, a simple international payment passes through many levels — messages, approvals, reconciliations, and long settlement queues.
With blockchain-based systems, the road becomes a direct highway. The settlement happens without waiting for multiple checks. Apart from that, everyone involved in the transaction looks at the same record regardless of their location or internal system.
Could this also reduce errors and make transactions more secure?
This series is brought to you in partnership with Algorand India.
Join The Core at the 2025 Algorand India Summit in Bengaluru on December 6-7. Register today to discover how blockchain technology is helping transform access to finance. Register here.
CORE NUMBER
3,94,450 units
That’s the number of three-wheelers dispatched in April–September 2025 — a 5.5% year-on-year increase — as India’s three-wheeler market entered the second half of FY26 on a steady footing, buoyed by a firm first-half performance and a festive-season lift. As per industry data, retail sales rose 3.8% to 618,236 units in H1, and October added further momentum with retail volumes up 5.4% and wholesale dispatches rising 5.9%.
The Lead: Demand continues to be driven by last-mile mobility needs, growing uptake in Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities, and increasing small-load movement. Passenger three-wheelers remain the dominant segment, though goods carriers are expanding slightly faster due to short-haul logistics demand. Exports have also remained stable. Analysts expect full-year growth of around 7%, with second-half demand likely to mirror H1’s 5–6% expansion, Business Standard reported.
Setup: Electric three-wheelers are on a long-term growth path, but near-term sales may soften as PM e-Drive subsidies near exhaustion. Still, with core demand drivers intact, manufacturers head into the second half of FY26 with cautious optimism.
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FROM THE PERIPHERY
AI’s Future At Crossroads?
Yann LeCun, one of AI’s most influential figures and until recently Meta’s chief AI scientist, has renewed his criticism of the industry’s obsession with large language models (LLMs), Business Insider reported. Speaking in Brooklyn, LeCun said systems like ChatGPT, Gemini and Llama are “useful” but “not a path to human-level intelligence,” arguing that the focus on LLMs is starving alternative research, particularly his long-advocated “world models” built on visual and real-world understanding.
Setting: His remarks come amid speculation that he may leave Meta to launch an AI venture, reflecting a broader shift in industry momentum as companies race to build ever-larger models following ChatGPT’s breakout success.
Context: Meanwhile, speaking to the BBC, Google CEO Sundar Pichai has urged users not to “blindly trust” AI, warning that current systems remain error-prone and that the investment surge resembles the dot-com bubble. Despite the risks, he said Google’s integrated control of chips, data and research positions it strongly as it commits £5 billion to expand its UK AI footprint.
Markets Gain Traction
India’s corporate earnings are experiencing their strongest rebound in over a year, with brokerages becoming increasingly optimistic about profit growth in the second half as consumption improves. According to Reuters, cooling inflation, tax cuts on consumer goods and supportive monetary policy have lifted demand, while early festive data show stronger discretionary spending.
Outcome: Markets have risen on stable tax collections and firm credit growth, giving companies confidence for the rest of FY26. Analysts expect accelerated double-digit earnings in FY26’s second half and FY27. BSE500 profits grew 16.6% in the September quarter, led by oil marketing firms, telecom, metals, tech, NBFCs and capital goods.
What’s Next? Heavyweights such as Airtel, Tata Steel, HDFC Bank, Reliance, and TCS drove Nifty gains. Mid-caps hit record highs, while small-caps lagged amid more earnings misses.
India’s MRO Boost.
Hyderabad-based Azad Engineering announced a long-term agreement with Pratt & Whitney Canada Corporation to develop and manufacture aircraft engine components. While the financial value remains confidential, the pact underscores India's growing capability in the specialised aerospace sector.
Why It Matters: Azad, which already supplies clients like General Electric and Honeywell, is expanding its role from general industrial equipment to critical aviation parts. This development significantly supports India's Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) push. By manufacturing complex, high-precision components domestically, the country reduces its reliance on imports for essential spares and maintenance, boosting Aatmanirbhar Bharat.
Flashpoint: Concurrently, Aequs is establishing an engine MRO facility with Canada’s Magellan Aerospace, alongside its existing 10-year contract to supply critical airframe components to Airbus. The Core Report interviewed Aravind Melligeri, Chairman and CEO of Aequs, to talk about the high barrier to entry of aerospace manufacturing and more. Other firms like Godrej, Hindustan Aeronautics Limited and Bharat Forge are also increasing high-precision manufacturing for global OEMs.
PODCASTS
Global Markets Turn Nervous
On Episode 729 of The Core Report, financial journalist Govindraj Ethiraj talks to Ashish Nanda, Chief Digital Business Officer, Kotak Securities.
Global markets turn nervous even as tech leaders downplay the AI boom.
Outgoing Meta AI chief blasts LLMs
Morgan Stanley updates and upgrades India outlook to 107,000 on Sensex in a year
Algo trading is now becoming a retail product. How it works
Cloudflare goes down
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