Maruti Suzuki WagonR's electric version has been the center of attention for a while, thanks to its numerous spy shots. However, the brand is in no hurry to launch electric vehicles in the Indian market. In fact, a recent media report from Nikkei Asia suggests that Suzuki Motor Corporation will launch its first EV by the fiscal year 2025, starting with the Indian market, followed by Japan and Europe. The brand will also invest $9 billion by March 2026 for research and development in automotive electrification.
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This is a quite significant move considering India’s largest passenger carmaker is going against the trend, while its major competitors like Tata, Hyundai, Mahindra, MG, and Toyota have a slew of launches in the coming months/years. As a matter of fact, Toyota's first EV in India will be based on the Maruti WagonR (XL5) that we have spotted testing various times.
The high prices associated with electric vehicles and the lack of charging infrastructure in India could be the core reasons why Maruti Suzuki is avoiding entering the electric vehicle space. However, the company plans to set up a battery production plant in Gujrat with Denso (an electrical automotive components manufacturer) and Toshiba, which is expected to start producing lithium-ion batteries for Maruti Suzuki's hybrid cars by September 2021. This will also help the brand to keep the pricing of its future EVs competitive as batteries are the most expensive part of an electric vehicle. The report also states the Maruti Suzuki's first EV will belong to a compact segment that will retail for around 1.5 million Japanese Yen (approximately Rs 10 lakh).
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On the other hand, Tata has plans to launch 10 new EVs by 2025, whereas Mahindra has announced to introduce six hybrid and electric vehicles by 2027, out of which two will be dedicated battery-electric vehicles (BEVs). Meanwhile, the central and various state/UT governments have been ramping up their exercises to encourage the adoption of EVs through various incentives and other schemes. In this process, the Maharashtra state government is the latest to announce a revised EV policy for their region.
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