Maintaining that electrification is the future, TVS Motor Company has said it will introduce a full portfolio of electric vehicles (EVs) over a period of eight quarters in the domestic and international markets. The company has observed that the recent acquisition of e-bike companies EGO Movement and Swiss E-Mobility Group (SEMG), both in Switzerland, will provide synergy for its EV initiatives in domestic and global markets. Besides, its recent tie-up with BMW to float a common platform for EVs would also help the company make aggressive plans in designing new products.
K N Radhakrishnan, director & CEO of TVS Motor, said at an earnings conference call that it is ramping up EV business, and its e-scooters will be available pan India by the end of the current fiscal year. Currently, TVS iQube — company’s maiden e-two-wheeler — is available in 33 cities, and it has received over 6,000 bookings.
The company will have a production capacity of 10,000 e-scooters per month by the first quarter of the next financial year. TVS Motor will start ramping up its capacity from second qurter onwards, as it has chalked out aggressive capacity expansion plans for the next financial year. It will also look at exporting the iQube to the overseas markets.
Radhakrishnan said: “Electrification definitely is our focus and strategy. You will see electrification moving much faster in many cities in India. Our hyphothesis is that you will see more electrification coming in the scooter segment, and scooter, as a category, will get expanded more. Overall, as an industry, the two-wheeler has got huge opportunity to grow, because there are the public transport issues coupled with the fact that the infrastructure spending will boost the need for personal mobility.”
He said though there were challenges on the semi-conductor front, the company has been in continuous talks with the suppliers for long-term contracts. TVS Motor has been progressing on the earlier-announced EV investment of Rs 1,000 crore for building a full portfolio of products and marketing strategies. The company had entered into an MoU with Tamil Nadu government to invest Rs 1,200 crore on future technologies and EVs.
The CEO said company’s EV portfolio will have products catering to various segments in both two-wheelers and three -wheelers, and will be made for domestic and international markets.
“We are envisaging a wide and reliable charging infrastructure for our customers across India. Our association with Tata Power and others have helped us establishing the charging presence. We will be tying with many more companies to set up additional charging stations,” he said. The company has got orders for 2,000 e-3Ws from CESL, subsidiary of EESL. On the capex and investment front, Radhakrishnan said in FY22, so far, it has completed Rs 1400 crore. “For FY23, we are working on the figures,” he said.
