Joint crack team of Maruti, Tata Motors, M&M to develop hybrid cars in India
The Mahindra group's Igatpuri plant becomes the first in India to be declared carbon-neutral. Ashish Narsale / Rediff.com finds out how this was achieved.
Hyderabad will host India's first ever ePrix on February 11.
American tech billionaire Elon Musk on Saturday said his proposed visit to India has been postponed due to "very heavy Tesla obligations". The electric carmaker Tesla CEO -- who was expected to be in India on April 21 and 22 and scheduled to meet Prime Minister Narendra Modi -- wrote on X that he is looking forward to coming to India later this year.
Passenger vehicle sales in India touched a record high of 41.08 lakh units in 2023, growing by 8.3 per cent over the previous year driven by SUVs, which accounted for almost half of the total dispatches from manufacturers to dealers. The record sales have been achieved despite an increase in the average price of vehicles to Rs 11.5 lakh last year as compared to Rs 10.58 lakh in 2022. Market leader Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai Motor India, Tata Motors and Toyota Kirloskar Motor reported their best-ever annual sales in 2023.
Initially it will procure only e-rickshaws and e-autos for leasing to operators
India's traditional companies are now moving full scale into the renewable and alternative energy space that had been dominated by smaller players over the past decade. Companies such as government-owned NTPC and the Adani and the Tata groups restructured their businesses well in time to become major players in the green space. At the same time, other conventional companies, such as Larsen & Toubro and Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL), which have a presence both in the energy sector as well as myriad other activities - construction, technology and retailing - are tying up with new-age companies to hitch a ride to a greener path.
'I have personally been very keen on investing in lithium ion battery technology for some time.'
From setting up cutting-edge facilities to cater to the domestic market and building capabilities of global standards, the action is building up.
Signals received from the government in the past one year reflect a state of utter confusion, says Abhishek Tripathi.
'We will see a lot of investments from the private sector.' 'As long as we are not impacted by some global events, I think we will be in a strong place.'
While home-grown firms like Tata and Mahindra have been actively participating in the government's e-mobility mission, by launching electrified versions of their existing models, the global firms believe electric is not the best solution for a country where the primary source of power generation is coal, and where infrastructure is a big impediment.
Bhavish Aggarwal, the founder of ride-hailing firm Ola who disrupted the electric scooters market in the country, is planning to launch an electric sports car in 2024. The plan will put it in competition with Indian players, such as the Tata group and Mahindra & Mahindra, and global giants like Tesla and Hyundai. Aggarwal, recently, took a group of reporters to the firm's design studio at the Ola campus in Bengaluru where his teams are working on several EVs, including scooters, motorcycles, sedans, and SUVs - and even robotaxis.
Increasing the duties on auto parts and putting an additional cess on petrol and diesel could drive up costs of vehicles, specially where volumes are low and localisation is not viable.
If the alliance works out as planned, it will give a big boost to Mahindra, as it has been struggling with its only car model Verito, managing to sell around 200 units a month
This year's edition, three years lost to the pandemic and scheduling, wore a distinctive shade of green, and, as would befit an era of technology shift from internal combustion engines to electric motors, had a clutch of high-technology exhibits and concepts. But the excitement of the expo's heyday was missing.
Even as India's passenger-vehicle sales touched a record high of 3.9 million units in 2022-23, growing 27 per cent over the previous financial year, the country's largest carmaker, Maruti Suzuki India (MSIL), said on Monday uncertainties in the electronic-component supplies might affect production in FY24. MSIL said the shortage of electronic components had some impact on production in FY23. "The company took all possible measures to minimise the impact.
E-vehicles may face pollution hurdle with hazardous batteries. One lithium-ion battery has a potential to poison the whole water aquifer of Delhi.
If the drop in sales over the past two years is anything to go by, India's dream of putting seven million electric vehicles on road by the end of this decade has come a cropper.
Automobile dealers' body FADA said the Budget lacked immediate demand boosters for the automobile industry.
Both are finding it difficult to sell one each of their plants -- Chennai Maraimalai Nagar (Ford) and Talegaon near Pune (GM) -- and are finding the road blocked by employee severance snarl-ups, report Sohini Das and Shine Jacob.
Ford, which had announced to quit the Indian market last year, said it was exploring the possibility of using one of its plants in India to produce electric cars for exports.
The number of participating automakers has fallen from 50 in 2018 to 30 this year. The count of exhibitors, including technology companies, has come down from 119 to 112. And showstopper luxury and supercar brands, including Toyota, Jeep, Lamborghini, Porsche, and Volvo will be missing. Similarly, the commercial vehicle makers also gave the show a miss -- a prolonged economic slowdown has dented their fortunes and near chances of any recovery.
New electric and hybrid vehicles on display as manufacturers plug into environment-friendly segment.
A single application and a plethora of services for passenger cars - that is what myTVS, a brand that operates under Ki Mobility Solutions and is part of the TVS family, is set to bring to customers, in a bid to disrupt the concept of "super apps" in India. Starting July 15, myTVS will launch its connected car platform or super app called myTVS Life360 for aftermarket passenger cars. Through it, customers will be able to avail themselves of a range of services like maintenance, diagnostics, roadside assistance, accessories, payments, insurance, and so on.
Tesla began taking orders for its $35,000 Model 3 sedan from Indian customers in April last year.
'Some of the launches may get deferred due to the semiconductor shortage, which is unlikely to get resolved before the second half of 2022.'
Among the cars unveiled at the Auto Expo on Wednesday was Mahindra and Mahindra's e-KUV for Rs 8.2 lakhs ex-showroom Delhi. With a single charge range of 150 km and a 55 min fast charging upto 80 pc, it was both a head-turner and a conversation-starter.
'EV-charging is the next big opportunity after fuelling'
New participants included Chinese players such as Great Wall Motors and Haima Automobile along with Olectra.
Tesla began taking orders for its Model 3 sedan from Indian customers in 2016 and caught the fancy of people like GOQii's Vishal Gondal, Paytm's Vijay Shekhar Sharma and venture capitalist Mahesh Murthy. Amid hints from Elon Musk, Alnoor Peermohamed reports on Tesla's Indian entry.
With its foray into self-drive, Ola will go head-to-head with early entrants Zoomcar, Revv and a few other.
The global semiconductor shortage hit passenger vehicle sales in September, with major manufacturers like Maruti Suzuki, Hyundai and Mahindra & Mahindra reporting a decline in sales on Friday. Kia India and Honda Cars also reported a dip in wholesales last month as compared with the year-ago period. Carmakers like Tata Motors, Toyota Kirloskar Motor, Nissan and Skoda, however, reported an increase in passenger vehicle dispatches last month despite supply chain issues.
From 5G to Tesla to Covid vaccine, 10 things will shape India's future.
What will it take for Tesla to plug and play in India? Sector pundits say it's a mix of strategy, getting the price right, timing, the right talent, and above all, patience.
After GM's India exit, Ford-Mahindra 'strategic alliance' under spotlight.
While hybrids, CNG and biofuels found favour in 2018 among many carmakers including Maruti Suzuki, Mercedes-Benz, Toyota and Honda, others such as M&M and Tata Motors have shown full faith in electric vehicles.
Buses that run on battery, trucks that purr on LNG, and more from the stables of Tata Motors, Mahindras and Ashok Leyland. The Auto Expo 2018 had these and more.
The Mahindra BAJA SAE India recently held its annual challenge for undergraduate engineers.
The partnership will look to expand Ford's reach in the fast-growing Indian market and improve M&M's access to global markets
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