Focus on localisation in EV development says former SIAM President, Wadhera

Contrarily, the auto industry's expenses went up by several $100 millions on account of importing components for the BS VI, claims Former President of SIAM.

By Shahkar Abidi calendar 17 Jun 2022 Views icon4237 Views Share - Share to Facebook Share to Twitter Share to LinkedIn Share to Whatsapp

India's fast developing electric vehicle (EV) industry should focus on becoming a global EV  technology hub vis-a-vis global EV manufacturing hub or else the situation may turn out akin to BS VI emission transition which though may have helped in reducing the pollution levels but not necessarily decreased the import bills. 

Contrarily, the auto industry's expenses went up by several $100 millions on account of importing components for the BS VI, claims Rajan Wadhera, Former President, SIAM, and a senior Advisor Mahindra & Mahindra. 

As per industry estimates, more than 1,000 models and variants of BS IV were moved to BS VI emission norms in a record  3 years, even as the entire process cost the auto industry upward of Rs 70,000 crore in investments. 

"I remember when I was President of SIAM, the auto industry was pushed into early  BS VI. I had warned that adopting BS VI technology early is good from a reduced pollution perspective but not good for reducing bills of imports. Consequently, it has gone up several 100 million dollars. BS VI components today are imported. We don't have the technology." Wadhera said while speaking during the launch of a report by Arthur D Little titled – 'Unlocking India's electric mobility potential', which was released on Thursday. Wadhera was SIAM President during 2018-20. In April 2020, India transitioned to the BS VI emission regime from BS IV bypassing the intermediate level. The transition brought India on par with European emission norms. 

"While we may have achieved pollution control but 'atma nirbharta' is not achieved. If we push the same needle in terms of manufacturing  EV,  then it may go the same way. We may manufacture electric cars though not with our technologies but all acquired from outside of India" he added. As per Wadhera, another downfall of depending on imports is that the EV production may get hit in case of any supply side disruptions on account of changes in geopolitical situations.

Also read
SIAM's Rajan Wadhera: 'Industry may see 50% sales decline over two years (FY2020, 2021).'
 

RELATED ARTICLES
KPIT transfers pathbreaking sodium ion battery tech to Trentar Energy for commercialisation

auther Autocar India calendar12 Feb 2025

KPIT’s sodium-ion battery technology, which uses earth-abundant raw materials and has promising application in e-mobilit...

Denso looks to double India revenues by 2030

auther Autocar India calendar11 Feb 2025

The Japanese Tier-1 major is betting big on upcoming products in ADAS and electrification to accelerate its growth in th...

Readywire's new ERP tools can boost operational efficiency at auto dealerships

auther Autocar Pro News Desk calendar30 Jan 2025

With its IT solutions aimed at overhauling the back- and front-end operations of automotive dealerships with a digital b...