Davos, Switzerland (Reuters) – Mahindra and Mahindra’s CEO told Reuters that the company will look into getting more parts for its electric vehicles (EVs) from other companies.
Anish Shah said that Mahindra had focused on making EV parts in-house for a long time, but that it had changed its strategy and was now looking to make partnerships to grow faster in the market.
Last week, Mahindra and Volkswagen (ETR: VOWG p) signed a partnership agreement.Under this agreement, Mahindra will look into using Volkswagen motors, battery system parts, and cells in its electric cars.
“There are going to be a lot more partnerships in the future. Instead of doing everything ourselves, it’s better to find the best there is “Shah said in an interview at the Davos meeting of the World Economic Forum.
“At this point, it’s VW (Volkswagen), and as we see similar strengths in other areas, we’re open to looking at different parts we could bring in, and we’ll also keep doing what we’re good at in-house,” he said.
Mahindra is betting a lot on developing its lineup of electric vehicles (EVs), but it will face tough competition from India’s Tata Motors (NYSE: TTM) in a country where the clean mobility sector is growing quickly.
As India works to meet its climate change and carbon reduction goals, Prime Minister Narendra Modi is giving companies billions of dollars in incentives to build electric vehicles (EVs).
India sells about 3 million cars every year, but only 1% of those are electric vehicles. Most people still choose to buy cheaper cars that use a lot of gas instead.
Tata is the leader in India’s EV market, and TPG gave them $1 billion last year to help grow the business. SAIC Motor, which is based in China, owns MG Motor India. MG Motor India also wants to raise money to grow its EV business.
Shah said that Mahindra will spend “significant funds” on EVs and that the money is available. He also said, “We will always be open to opportunities to create value.”
Mahindra has made a number of electric commercial vehicles in India, but its latest efforts are focused on passenger cars, especially SUVs (SUVs).
Shah said, “Our sweet spot has been real SUVs, and that’s where we’re going to stay.” We won’t make EV sedans or hatchbacks. “