MG Motor To Launch A Budget Electric Car, 500 Km Range ZS EV As Part Of EV Offerings

MG Motor India is one of the very few OEMs who already have an electric vehicle offering in the Indian market. To build on its EV portfolio, MG has now confirmed that it will be increasing its investment in the electric vehicle space in India from 2022.

MG is counting on the time to come after the pandemic to have an increased focus on zero-emission vehicles. In an interaction with Mint, a top executive of the company also mentioned that the company expects the economy to return to normalcy in a couple of years. Hence, MG wants to be ready with its EV offerings in the market by the time the transition is actually experienced on the Indian roads.

MG Motor India has various steps outlined for the efforts in this direction. For one, it is going to introduce an affordable electric vehicle, with a price range of Rs 12-15 lakh, in India. The low cost EV will also be eligible for EV-related subsidies under the Indian government's FAME scheme.

MG ZS Electric

In addition to the budget EV, MG will also launch a higher range variant of its ZS EV. The upgraded range will be around 500-kilometre on a single charge, if the report pans out as planned.

Apart from the two electric cars, MG will focus on localisation of the production of these electric vehicles in India. As mentioned in the report, the company will start assembling lithium-ion batteries in India in addition to other critical components of such EVs.

Rajeev Chaba, president, MG Motor India said, ¡°This is our mid-term to long term plan. We want to double our bets on electric vehicles in the medium to long term and want to be the leader (in the EV space). That¡¯s why we will come with a battery with 500 kilometres range to show our intent."

It is easy to see why the investment would not yield any immediate returns. One reason is the deep slump that the Indian auto market is in at present due to the Covid-19 pandemic and its effects. Once that recedes and the economy is able to get back to normal, it would take at least a year¡¯s time for people to have the spending capacity and an eye for electric vehicles over IC engine ones.