Toyota and Suzuki to introduce electric vehicles in India by 2020

Japanese auto majors Toyota Motor Corporation and Suzuki Motor Corporation said that they will co-operate on introducing electric vehicles (EVs) in India by 2020.

The two companies said in a joint statement that they have concluded a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to take forward a co-operative structure under which Suzuki will produce EV s for the Indian market and will supply some of them to Toyota, which will provide technical support.

Besides, the statement said, they intend to conduct a comprehensive study of activities for widespread acceptance and popular use of EVs in India.

“Such activities encompass the establishment of charging stations, human resources development that includes training for after-service technicians employed throughout sales networks, and systems for the appropriate treatment of end-of-life batteries,” it said.

In February this year, the two companies had announced exploration of a business partnership after which they began discussing, among other topics, the dissemination of vehicle electrification technologies in India.

Suzuki has already announced that it intends to construct a lithium-ion battery plant along with its partners in Gujarat, where it currently operates a manufacturing plant supplying automobiles exclusively to its Indian arm Maruti Suzuki.

As per the agreement, in addition to lithium-ion batteries, electric motors and other major components would be locally procured for production of EVs in India. The announcement by the two companies comes at a time when the Indian government is pushing for electric vehicles, setting a target of an all electric fleet by 2030.