While manufacturers like Tata Motors is lining up various electric vehicles for the Indian market, Maruti Suzuki has announced that it will not launch any electric vehicle in the Indian market till the demand soars. RC Bhargava, Chairman, Maruti Suzuki said that the company does not want to sell 1,000 units per month and will launch an EV when the demand rises.
Addressing a virtual conference, RC Bhargava said that under the current circumstances, a lot of parts including the batteries, charging infrastructure and supply of electronics are done by third parties and the company cannot control the cost. Which is one of the reasons for the high price of electric vehicles.
Also read: Maruti Suzuki reports 31 percent increase in sales of CNG models.
Not aiming to sell 500 units per month
Bhargava said that Maruti Suzuki will not be happy by selling 300, 500, 500 or even 1,000 units of electric cars in the Indian market. He also added that Maruti Suzuki is selling 2 million cars every year and it will not make sense to sell a car that sells less than 1,00,000 units every year out of 2 million.
Talking about the demand for the Maruti Suzuki cars, Bhargava said that there has to be a great demand for the product. All Maruti Suzuki products that have been launched have had a very significant demand in the Indian market.
Maruti Suzuki wants to make a car that is more saleable in the market. Maruti Suzuki’s parent company Suzuki Motor Corporation, Japan will decide the timeline of an electric car for Maruti Suzuki. The manufacturer estimates that it will be able to launch an electric vehicle in India only after 2025.
He also said that a number of factors will decide the launch timeline of an electric vehicle. At the present, it is difficult to predict the pricing of electric vehicles, batteries and how the infrastructure will come up in the future.
Maruti Suzuki started testing 50 WagonR EVs across India
Back in 2018, Maruti Suzuki officially flagged off 50 units of WagonR EV for testing in the Indian conditions. Flagging off the vehicles, Maruti Suzuki said that the data and feedback collected by these vehicles will be a valuable input in the development process of a new electric car for the Indian market.
The WagonR EV was expected to be launched in 2020 but it seems like Maruti Suzuki has put the project on the shelf for the time being. Maruti Suzuki has also said that it will focus on CNG and flex-fuel engines in the near future. The Indian government is also promoting flex-fuel engines to reduce India’s dependency on crude oil imports.
Also read: Citroen”s 3 new cars for India DETAILED
The post No EVs from Maruti till they can sell 10,000 a month! first appeared on Cartoq.