NEW DELHI: Hyundai Motor Co (005380.KS) of South Korea has started designing a tiny electric car for India in the future, even as it focuses on delivering more premium models to the nation this year, according to a company executive.
In an interview, Tarun Garg, director sales, marketing, and service for Hyundai India, said that many departments are working on topics such as the charging environment, sales network, production, and the type of assembly process the manufacturer should have.
“We need to look at as much localisation as possible,” Garg added, referring to sourcing and manufacturing components locally to keep prices down and keep the automobiles inexpensive.
While Garg would not say when the company’s small electric vehicle (EV) would be launched in India, he did say that the timing must be appropriate “so we can introduce it at the right pricing.”
He stated, “The environment should be ready, and we should have adequate charge.”
The little EV is part of Hyundai’s larger ambition to invest 40 billion rupees ($512 million) in India by 2028 to debut six electric vehicles, promoting clean driving in a country with some of the world’s most polluted cities.
EVs account for less than 1% of total automobile sales in India, but the government wants to increase that to 30% by 2030 in order to reduce pollution and fuel imports.
Hyundai will offer premium vehicles beginning with its Ioniq 5 electric crossover this year and steadily go down the price chain until its little EV hits the roads, according to Garg.
In the United States, the Ioniq 5, which has a range of around 480 kilometres, starts at around $44,000.
