Start of Production of Maruti Suzuki’s first BEV, e VITARA for sales in over 100 countries and Suzuki’s first Lithium-ion battery, cell & electrode manufacturing in India for strong hybrid electric vehicles – Significant milestones in Make in India and Aatmanirbhar Bharat
- Hon’ble Chief Minister of Gujarat, Shri Bhupendra Patel, and Ambassador of Japan to India, H.E. Mr. Keiichi Ono grace the ceremony
- Manufactured exclusively at Maruti Suzuki’s Gujarat plant, first batch of e VITARA is set to sail for the European region from Pipavav port, this month
- Suzuki Group has invested over INR 1,00,000 crore in India. These investments have also led to the creation of over 11,00,000 direct jobs in the value chain
Hansalpur / New Delhi : Hon’ble Prime Minister, Shri Narendra Modi, today commemorated the Start of Production of Maruti Suzuki’s first Battery Electric Vehicle (“BEV”), e VITARA, for sales in over 100 countries, at Suzuki Motor Gujarat Private Limited (“SMG”), a wholly owned subsidiary of Maruti Suzuki India Limited (“Maruti Suzuki”). The Hon’ble Prime Minister also celebrated the start of local manufacturing of first Lithium-ion battery, cell & electrode for strong hybrid electric vehicle at TDS Lithium-Ion Battery Gujarat Private Limited (“TDSG”), Maruti Suzuki’s fellow subsidiary.
Hon’ble Chief Minister of Gujarat, Shri Bhupendra Patel; H.E. Mr. Keiichi Ono, Ambassador of Japan to India; Mr. Toshihiro Suzuki, Representative Director and President, Suzuki Motor Corporation; Mr. R.C. Bhargava, Chairman, Maruti Suzuki; and Mr. Hisashi Takeuchi, Managing Director & CEO, Maruti Suzuki attended the momentous event along with senior dignitaries from the State Government, business partners and Maruti Suzuki.
At a time, when most conversations about electric vehicles in India are around imports from technologically advanced countries, car market leader Maruti Suzuki decided to bring a paradigm shift and produced a state-of-the-art BEV, the e VITARA both for the Indian market and for export to over 100 markets of the world including in Europe and Japan.
Maruti Suzuki’s e VITARA is slated to be the largest mass-produced and exported electric vehicle from India. Born of a successful India-Japanese partnership, the e VITARA combines Suzuki’s technology with India’s manufacturing prowess, in true spirit of Make in India; Make for the World. The e VITARA is built on a freshly designed EV-only platform and is not an IC engine vehicle converted to EV as the latter involves several design compromises. A preview of the e VITARA has been done earlier in Milan, Italy and at Bharat Mobility Global Expo in New Delhi, India.
In another major accomplishment, Maruti Suzuki’s fellow subsidiary, TDSG has become the first company in India to achieve electrode level localization of lithium-ion battery cells, making India self-reliant in battery manufacturing for hybrid electric vehicles. This electrode level (cathode + anode) localization is one step towards increasing proliferation of hybrid electric vehicles in the country. These lithium-ion batteries go into the hybrid system of the popular SUV model, the Grand Vitara.
Both these milestones advance Aatmanirbhar Bharat vision of Shri Narendra Modi, through localization of supply chains and skill development for the electrified powertrain ecosystem. These milestones will bring in the volume and scale to make the vision a reality.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Toshihiro Suzuki, Representative Director and President, Suzuki Motor Corporation said, “We are deeply honoured that Hon’ble Prime Minister graced the occasion of commemoration of two historic events for the Indian automobile industry. His inspiration and visionary leadership have made this possible. His vision of Make in India and Aatmanirbhar Bharat have been inspiring Suzuki to invest in India. These milestones are also a testimony to the enduring Indo-Japanese partnership, built on mutual trust and a shared vision for progress and a carbon neutral future. We will provide all products and technologies that will reduce oil consumption and imports and carbon emissions like battery electric vehicles, strong hybrid electric vehicles and vehicles powered by natural gas and biofuels.”
Global rollout of Maruti Suzuki’s first BEV e VITARA
Manufactured exclusively at Suzuki Motor Gujarat, the first batch of export bound e VITARA will be shipped from Pipavav port to the European region, including the United Kingdom, Germany, Norway, France, Denmark, Switzerland, Netherlands, Sweden, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Austria, and Belgium.
Source: worldautoforum.com
