Japanese automaker Suzuki Motor Corporation (SMC) will invest Rs 70,000 crore, or around $8 billion, in India over the next five to six years, chairman and president Toshihiro Suzuki said on Tuesday as the production of the carmaker’s first batteryelectric vehicle started at the Hansalpur facility.
Commercial production of the midsized eVitara SUV was flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Prime Minister said the plant, including the eVitara, was a “big leap” towards the government’s “Make in India” goal.
Toshihiro Suzuki said the Gujarat facility, which serves customers across India and global markets, will soon become one of the world’s largest automobile manufacturing hubs, with a planned capacity of one million units. The facility now has an annual capacity of 750,000 cars across three production lines.
“We chose this facility to manufacture the eVitara, our first BEV and make it a global production hub for this model. We will export this ‘MadeinIndia BEV’ to over 100 countries, including Japan and Europe,” he said. The company’s second major milestone is the “start of production of India’s first lithiumion battery and cell with electrode level localisation, which are used in our hybrid vehicles,” Suzuki added.
The eVitara, first showcased at the Bharat Mobility Global Expo last year, is the first of four battery electric vehicles that SMC plans to launch by the end of this decade. The company has set a target of producing 67,000 EVs in FY26. The company will export between 50,000 and 100,000 EVs annually.
Maruti Suzuki chairman RC Bhargava said no timeline has been set for the eVitara launch in the local market. “Exports may start first. For the domestic market, I need a certain minimum volume to supply my dealer network. Until localisation builds up, importing large volumes of batteries will make EVs costly,” Bhargava said.
He expressed confidence that the adoption of EVs in India would rise gradually though he ruled out a sudden surge. “EV demand is growing everywhere, but not at a very high rate. India cannot be an exception. For mass sales, the average consumer income needs to move closer to $5,000. At present, EVs are limited to higherincome buyers,” he said.
On the second plant to be set up in Gujarat, announced last year at an investment of Rs 35,000 crore, Bhargava said, “I am hoping we will be answering that question more specifically after the GST Council meeting (on September 4) because after that everybody will be making an estimate of what the impact of the GST decisions are going to be on future growth.” He, however, declined to comment on the implications of the proposed changes in GST slabs.
India remains SMC’s biggest market and accounted for over 61% of its total output and 57% of its global sales in the previous financial year. In India, Maruti Suzuki commands a market leading 40% share. SMC’s investment will help Maruti which aims to double production capacity in India to 4 million units by the end of this decade. The company manufactures 17 models that are exported to around 100 countries, including Japan.
(With inputs from agencies)
