ELECTRIFICATION OF AUTOMOBILES
Suzuki Motor Corporation, the parent company of Maruti, has confirmed an investment of Rs 10,440 crore in India to strengthen its EV game plan.
1. The company’s wholly-owned arm Suzuki Motor Gujarat (SMG) will invest Rs. 7,300 crore for the construction of a plant for Battery Electric Vehicles (BEV) batteries by 2026. Lithium cells are considered the heart of an electric vehicle and currently most EV makers buy batteries and cells from China, the world’s largest producer of Li-ion cells. Suzuki has already developed a Lithium-Ion battery pack production unit in a joint venture with Japanese companies Denso Corp and Toshiba at Hansalpur in Gujarat.
2. SMG will invest another Rs. 3,100 crore to increase production capacity for BEV manufacturing by 2025.
3. Moreover, another group firm Maruti Suzuki Toyotsu India (MSTI) will invest Rs. 45 crore for the construction of a vehicle recycling plant by 2025.
The investments, focussed on the electrification of vehicles, carry good potential to change the nature of vehicles in India. With a large part of the production localized, Maruti might be able to market an electric car at a cheaper price than its competitor.
