German automobile maker Volkswagen plans to launch the first vehicle powered by electric to India in the next year. This will be by establishing its premium electrical SUV ID.4 to take advantage of the potential in India’s rapidly expanding electric mobility sector, According to a PTI report that cited an official from the company on Tuesday.
In 2030, Volkswagen anticipates 25-30 percent of its revenues in India to be derived from electric vehicles and the remainder from internal combustion engines. The company, which recently launched numerous new variations of its current traditional engine models, Taigun and Virtus, aims to grow sales between 40 and 45 percent in the coming year.
“The company is following a two-pronged strategy of premiumisation and electrification to strengthen presence and enhance its position in India. Our strategy is very clear. One is premiumisation and the second has to be naturally in line with global positioning, electrification,” Volkswagen Passenger Cars India Brand Director Ashish Gupta told PTI.
Confirming that electrification needs to get “done now,” he stated, “You have to start working on it now in order to create an electric vehicle that is mass-produced within the timeframes the industry is considering somewhere between 2026 and 27. This is the time frame that the market is considering regarding electrification in mass. We’re contemplating similar timelines.”
The report also states that Gupta stated that electronic mobility within India is growing more quickly than anticipated. VW is confident that, by 2030, the amount of EV adoption within the passenger vehicle sector in India could reach about 18-30% of all sales, based on various studies. In the case of VW, He said that it is on the optimistic side and that EVs’ share of sales overall within India could be between 25 and 30 percent, with the remainder being internal combustion engines by 2030.
According to Gupta, the electrification process will be done in steps since India’s ecosystem has yet to be ready. He also said that “The supply base is not ready. About 50% of the car cost of an electric car is the battery and unless mass localisation of battery manufacturing happens in India, none of the OEMs, not only us, will be able to do mass electrification.”
