Ashok Leyland draws up EV road map, plans to launch first e-LCV in Dec

Commercial vehicles (CV) major Ashok Leyland lined up its electric vehicle (EV) road map on Wednesday, setting a target of becoming one of the world’s top 10 CV brands.

The company’s EV push will be done through UK-based Switch Mobility — a combined entity of Ashok Leyland’s electric CV operations and the erstwhile Optare of the UK.

Switch Mobility will be launching its first electric light commercial vehicle (e-LCV) in India by the end of December; it has secured 2,000 orders. These vehicles will be manufactured in India and sold under the Switch brand. The group has plans to invest $150-200 million in the EV space in the next few years.

Ashok Leyland said on Wednesday it has invested around $136 million in Switch Mobility and expects the new entity to raise its own capital in the future.

“Investors and strategic partners keen to tie up. We do not see any immediate fund requirement from Ashok Leyland,” said Dheeraj Hinduja, chairman, Ashok Leyland and Switch Mobility.

It was in 2013 that the Hinduja flagship company Ashok Leyland first evinced an interest in the EV space by acquiring British busmaker Optare Plc, while it lined up EV plans in India three years ago. The company already has expertise – it has more than 280 EVs in service covering over 26 million miles on a test basis.

Earlier on Wednesday, the management engaged key investors from India and London to showcase the growth opportunity and the crucial role Switch Mobility will play in shaping the commercial e-mobility space, globally.

Switch Mobility, the next-generation electric bus and LCV company, had recently announced strategic steps to further solidify its progress towards developing net-zero carbon mobility. As a step towards this, the company had appointed Andrew Palmer as executive vice-chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of Switch Mobility recently.

In April, Switch Mobility announced technological collaborations with various partners, including Siemens, to deliver e-mobility solutions that offer the lowest total cost of ownership to CV customers.

As part of its ramp-up, Switch Mobility has already signed customer agreements and letter of intent with leading logistics and e-commerce operators.

Hinduja made it clear that the company will focus on its stronghold – buses and light vehicles in the EV space – and not venture into e-cars.

Based on estimates, the global electric bus market is likely to touch around $70 billion by 2030. The new entity will be targeting India and the UK. The company’s strategy is to use India as a manufacturing hub to make use of its existing facilities in the country, in addition to its facility in Leeds.

Vipin Sondhi, managing director and CEO of Ashok Leyland, said, “These new initiatives give us the ability to drive the sustainability agenda which Ashok Leyland is passionate about. Switch Mobility, with its strength in net-zero carbon technologies, combined with Ashok Leyland’s expertise in the mobility space, will lead this change and enable us to fulfil our aspirations of net-zero carbon mobility.”The company said it has received orders for e-buses and will be participating in tenders across the UK and India for their supply.

“We have a head start in the e-mobility space, with our vehicles clocking millions of miles in service. We want to increase our reach further and work with different stakeholders to encourage the faster adoption of net-zero carbon mobility. Technology and innovation will continue to be pivotal in realising our aspirations in the e-bus and e-truck space,” said Palmer.

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