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Volkswagen to electrify 30% of its car portfolio for India by 2030

Date: April 19, 2023 Pooja Sharma Pooja Sharma
Volkswagen to electrify 30% of its car portfolio for India by 2030 
German automaker Volkswagen AG has reportedly announced that it is planning to have 30% of its passenger vehicle portfolio electrified in India by 2030. The move comes as part of the automaker’s bid to amplify its sustainable mobility efforts.



VW brand director, Ashish Gupta, stated that the company is laying groundwork to setup a dedicated EV platform for manufacturing electric cars locally. The automaker plans to assemble the maiden electric vehicle for India, ID.4, at its Aurangabad site using ‘part and components assembly’ for an anticipated launch in 2024, he further added.   



Apparently, Volkswagen India showcased ID.4 GTX EV for the first time on Tuesday at the annual brand event held in Kochi. VW was initially planning to launch ID.4 in Indian market in 2023 and has been testing since 2022. However, testing & validating the EV for Indian terrain and climate is a time-consuming as well as investment-heavy process, one the brand does not want to rush through.



It is speculated that in order to achieve scale and competitive pricing for ID.4 by localizing a ground-up EV platform, Volkswagen will entail €1 billion investment, which is in line with its Skoda Auto Volkswagen India 2.0 project.  



Gupta also reportedly also said that the only way to get volumes is by local manufacturing of the electric vehicles. Since the ecosystem and supply base are not yet ready, it is not possible to reach 30% market share, hence electrification will come in phases. To achieve mass electrification, the company will go with global premium products, hence slotting in ID.4.



Notably, the indigenous brands like Mahindra and Mahindra and Tata Motors are focusing on strategies for fast-track espousal of electric vehicles by electrifying the existing ICE powertrains in order to gain an early-mover advantage in the passenger EV segment in India.



While other OEMs are estimating private EV penetration in India at 15%, Volkswagen reckoning more bullish range of 25-30% electrification by 2030.



Source Credit: https://www.livemint.com/auto-news/vw-plans-to-electrify-30-of-its-cars-in-india-11681836495154.html

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Pooja Sharma

Pursuing her professional career as a content writer for over two years now, Pooja Sharma is endowed with a post-graduate degree in English Literature. The articles that she writes are a balanced blend of her ever-growing love of language and the technical expertise that she has gained over the years. Currently Pooja pens insightful articles for Newsorigins and numerous other websites, covering subjects such as business, finance, and technology.