India is also following the shift towards EV. The capital city has already witnessed EVs’ milestone completing over 2 crore Kilometers in the Delhi roads. Hyundai is among the latest automakers to speak about the electric shift in India.
Indian automakers like Tata Motors are leading the way towards the nation’s EV push. But other automakers like Hyundai are gearing up for the same.
Hyundai India’s shift to EV
Hyundai Motor India Ltd has recently announced that it is studying the feasibility of launching an affordable EV for its Indian consumers. Mr. S.S Kim, Hyundai India’s Managing Director, stated that this EV initiative is their “No. 1 priority”.
“We have the product and the technology, and we are reviewing the Indian market condition and the infrastructure situation here. We will come up with some options, which will be the best for the Indian market. It’s a No.1 priority in our future strategy,” – Mr. Kim said.
Mobility Services –
The South Korean automakers will not just concentrate on selling cars. It also aims to manufacture digital products like charging points to help the consumers have a smooth transition to EVs. Through these initiatives, Hyundai is trying to tender mobility services.
Hyundai knows that electric vehicles will dominate the automobile sector soon. Hence electrifying their vehicles will play an essential role in their success.
“Hyundai Motor Co. is one of the early adopters of electric technology, and we have various electric products. We are also quite advanced in the hydrogen fuel cell vehicle technology. Only Hyundai and Toyota sell these vehicles in the global market,” – Kim said.
Affected by Pandemic –
Just like every organization, Hyundai, too, was severely affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The South Korean automakers witnessed a heavy fall in their sales and infrastructure development. Hyundai’s electric ventures were also impacted and hence, delayed.
Mr. Kim’s thoughts on the same –
“It will be a bit affected, but we are working on it based on our electrification plan and schedules.
India’s SUV leaders –
Hyundai India has surpassed Maruti Suzuki in the SUV range, India’s fastest-growing segment. This achievement is because of the massive sales of Hyundai India’s SUV models like Venue and Creta.
Despite the momentum, Hyundai predicts that it will take at least 24 months to reach the pre-covid sales mark, which was 3 million in 2019.
“It will take two years to come to the pre-covid level of volumes. Personal mobility is still a major part of the demand, and in 2019, the Indian auto industry experienced a sudden fall in demand because of the transition to BS-VI emission norms and credit crunch.
So, that led to a decline of around 20%, and that demand is still alive. We expect the pent-up demand to continue till the first half of this year,” he said.
Government Initiatives –
State governments like Delhi, launching the Switch Delhi campaign to boost EVs. Goa, too has introduced various monetary incentives to promote the electric shift. Recently, the Union Government has also launched the “Go Electric” campaign to educate and spread awareness about EVs and their benefits. All these initiatives will also help the automakers in India in their gradual progress towards cleaner energy.
It will be interesting to see how Hyundai EV performs in India. Will it be able to dominate as it did with its combustion engines?
