Maruti Suzuki to convert its Alto, Wagon R, Celerio into electric cars

India’s largest car maker Maruti Suzuki, which commissioned a market survey to understand customers’ expectations early this year, has decided to develop electric motors for its small cars—Alto, Wagon R, Celerio and A-Star.

Maruti Suzuki plans to delve into manufacturing of electric vehicles in the small car segment over the next few years, as it seeks to tap a potentially large market for affordable eco-friendly vehicles.

Besides, it is planning to create an alternative to petrol and diesel vehicles and plans to CNG-run vehicles in the coming years.

The company has revealed earlier that plans to start selling electric vehicles (EVs) by 2020 and begin the manufacturing of such vehicles at its factory in Gujarat. Apart from EVs, the company will also set up a lithium-ion battery factory that will charge electric, hybrid and other vehicles from fixed kiosks. While Denso will provide technology for setting-up lithium-ion battery factory, Toshiba will power cell modules.

Collectively, Suzuki, Denso, and Toshiba will invest about $180 million for the plant, which is expected to be functional by 2020. The manufacturing unit will power Maruti and Suzuki’s electric vehicles fleet comprising of existing petrol and diesel models as well as new EVs.

In November, the car maker signed an in-principle agreement with Japanese automobile majors Toyota to consider a joint structure for the introduction of electric cars in India in 2020.

Amidst this, two other automobile majors Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) and Tata Motors are also pushing electric vehicles manufacturing in the country.

The government has set eyes on 100 per cent EVs for public mobility and 40 percent electric for personal mobility by 2030. As per the report published in May 2017 by Niti Aayog, making India’s passenger mobility shared, electric, and connected can cut its energy demand by 64% and carbon emissions by 37 per cent in 2030.

The development was reported by Mint.