India’s Mahindra To Explore More Partnerships For EV Parts

DAVOS, Switzerland,(Reuters) – India’s Mahindra and Mahindra (MAHM.NS) will explore sourcing more components from other companies to boost its electric vehicle (EV) portfolio, its chief executive told Reuters.

Reporting by Aditya Kalra in Davos; Editing by Alexander Smith

Anish Shah, Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of India’s Mahindra Group, said Mahindra had over time focused on developing EV components in-house, but now changed tack to forge partnerships to achieve faster growth in the segment.

Mahindra last week signed a partnership agreement with Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) in which it will explore equipping its electric cars with motors, battery system components and cells made by the German automaker. read more

“The world is moving towards a lot more partnerships. It’s better to source the best that’s out there, rather than do everything ourselves,” Shah said in an interview at the World Economic Forum summit at Davos.

“It’s VW (Volkswagen) at this stage and as we see similar strengths in other areas, we are open to looking at various components that we would bring in, and do what we are very good at in-house as well,” he added.

Although Mahindra is placing big bets on developing its EV portfolio, it will face fierce competition from India’s Tata Motors (TAMO.NS) in a country where the clean mobility sector is picking up fast.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is offering companies billions of dollars in incentives to build EVs, as India looks to meet its climate change and carbon reduction goals.

India’s EV market represents only 1% of the country’s annual sales of about 3 million vehicles, with consumers still opting for fuel-guzzling cars that are far more affordable.

Tata dominates India’s EV market and last year raised $1 billion from TPG for the business. MG Motor India, which is owned by China’s SAIC Motor (600104.SS), also has plans to raise funds to develop its EV business. read more

Shah said Mahindra will use “significant funds” for EVs and had them available, adding: “We always will be open to value creation opportunities”.

Mahindra has developed a portfolio of EV commercial vehicles in India, but the latest push is focussed on passenger cars, and more particularly, sports utility vehicles (SUVs).

“Our strike zone has been authentic SUVs, that’s where we are going to stay … we are not going to make EV sedans, no hatchbacks,” Shah said.

What You Missed:
Latest Product Launches From BOGE To Hexagon
5 Sustainability Concepts Driving The Data Center of the Future In Equinix
From Guiding To Self-Driving
Growth In Usage Of Ethanol Fuel in Automotive Industry Presents Opportunities
Google Cloud Launches New Solutions To Help Manufacturers Unify Their Data And Address Industry-Specific Use Cases
ESPRIT Is The Only CAM System You Will Ever Need
A Fully Digital 3D Printed Prosthetic Eye?
India Doubles Down On Coal As Heatwave Worsens Power Crisis
CADS Additive And EMUGE- FRANKEN Jointly Optimise Additive Manufacturing Processes

WANT MORE INSIDER NEWS? SUBSCRIBE TO OUR DIGITAL MAGAZINE NOW!