LG Electronics AC Sales Hit 1 Million, Claims Leadership

New Delhi, Apr 2 (PTI) LG Electronics India on Thursday said it has sold over a million air conditioners in the first quarter of 2026 and claimed to be a "decisive leader" in the category.

However, Tata group firm Voltas disputed its claim to be a leader in the segment, and said it still leads the residential air condition market, which is expected to be around 12-14 million units per year.

When contacted, Voltas declined to comment on the market development as it was under a silent period due to the coming quarter's results.

"That said, Voltas continues to maintain its leadership position in the room air-conditioning market, strengthened by the trust of customers and our continued focus on innovation, energy efficiency and service excellence," said Voltas management.

LG Electronics India (LGEI), which had a record listing on the bourses last year, in a statement announced the sale of 1 million-plus air conditioners in the first quarter of 2026 and said this landmark achievement marks the fastest and strongest start to a summer season in the company's history in India.

"This milestone not only underscores LGE India's exceptional execution capabilities and supply chain agility, but also cements its position as the decisive leader in India's fast-growing and highly competitive air conditioner market," it said.

According to LGEI, the key driver of this achievement was its first-mover advantage with the launch of its new BEE star-rated compliant AC line-up well ahead of the season.


Complementing this, LGE India's marketing campaign during the ICC World Cup also delivered great reach and consumer engagement, it said.

Apart from the domestic market, LGE India also exports its Made-in-India ACs to Sri Lanka, Nepal, Bangladesh, Southeast Asia, etc.

While Voltas had on April 2024, a year which witnessed a record summers, had claimed to have achieved the 2 million AC milestone, which was also an industry first.

The Indian RAC market is considered to be very competitive, where players, including Voltas, LG, Daikin, BlueStar, Hitachi, Panasonic, and Lloyd, etc, are operating.

The RAC industry expects good sales this year after having a dull year in 2025, as sales were impacted on account of unseasonal rainfall, along with other factors.

The industry had a very good growth a year before that, in 2024, when several parts of the country witnessed intense heatwaves.

This year, the air conditioning industry has already taken a hike in January, when new energy labelling norms were implemented by BEE from January 1, 2026.

However, due to current geopolitical tension, which has increased the price of plastics, copper and ocean freight, most players are going for a 5-15 per cent price hike.