TaMo-JLR will be making EVs in India for global markets: N Chandra | Company News

Without providing further details, Chandrasekaran said they have “bigger aspirations” and that Tata Motors will discuss their export plans in the next 12 months.

The Sanand plant in Gujarat, where Tata Motors has also acquired the former Ford Motors facility, is likely to produce the first car based on the EMA platform – Avinya. It is expected that the car will be manufactured for global markets in addition to being sold in India.

JLR already has manufacturing facilities in the United Kingdom, China, parts of Europe, and other locations, and has outlined its electrification plan. Tata Motors noted in its FY24 annual report that the new EMA and Jaguar Electrified Architecture will be introduced from 2025, as it transitions to an electric??’first business, with all its brands offering pure electric options by 2030. As part of this, its plants across the world will reconfigure – Solihull will produce electric Jaguars, followed by the conversion of Halewood in Merseyside, United Kingdom, into the first all??’electric manufacturing facility. JLR’s plant in Nitra, Slovakia, will be updated to produce electric vehicles by 2030.

JLR is working to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 2030 compared to FY20 baselines and is collaborating with partners and suppliers to cut emissions by 46 per cent in its own operations and by 54 per cent per vehicle across its entire value chain.

In his interview, Chandrasekaran highlighted his desire to foster a culture of openness and innovation to explore possibilities. “We can bring the cost attitude of Tata Motors with the design and sophistication of JLR. If we can do that, we will be in a sweet spot. Then you get the benefit accruing in two different ways, and the volumes go up, which justifies the investment into the [EMA] platform.”

He stated that it may not be individually viable for Tata Motors to make that investment, and JLR volumes may not be sufficient, adding, “We are talking about not only the platforms but also the electric and electronic (E/E) architecture.”

Apart from the Sanand plant, another major hub for manufacturing and exports could be the upcoming Tamil Nadu project. The new project, which involves an investment of Rs 9,000 crore, is expected to be a joint facility for Tata Motors and JLR. Announcements are likely later this month.

Tata Passenger Electric Mobility has committed investments of over a couple of billion dollars in electric vehicles until the end of this decade, while JLR has outlined a capital expenditure roadmap of over £15 billion in the next five years.

Chandrasekaran said he is not concerned about any short-term demand slowdown in electric vehicles, describing these as cycles. FY25 has been challenging for electric vehicle sales for Tata Motors. In the first quarter of FY25, while overall Tata Motors passenger vehicle wholesales were down 1.1 per cent, electric vehicle volumes (at 16,600 units) fell sharply by 13.9 per cent due to a steep decline in the fleet segment.

“If we have to do anything in India, electric vehicles should be prioritised because we have the maximum number of polluted cities worldwide. Fourteen out of the top 20 are in India. So, if we have to solve this problem, in all our companies, we have to pivot,” he said, adding that by 2030, electric vehicle penetration in Tata Motors sales would be 30 per cent.

Chandrasekaran also pointed out that the entire Tata Group, not just Tata Motors, is making the pivot. “We also decided that in Tata Power, we would not put capital expenditure into coal. All our capital expenditure will go into renewables.”

First Published: Sep 17 2024 | 2:03 PM IST