Following Rs 1,200 crore pledge, Ashok Leyland invests Rs 662 crore into EV arm

Chennai-based Ashok Leyland, which had previously approved an equity infusion of Rs 1,200 crore into its electric vehicle arm Optare in November last year, made a significant investment of Rs 662 crore during the quarter ending December 2023 (Q3 FY24).

According to the company's management, the remaining amount will be infused into one or more tranches over the next few months, indicating the company's commitment to further support Optare's growth and expansion plans.

Shenu Agarwal, MD & CEO, Ashok Leyland, said, "Out of that Rs 1,200 crore, we have already invested Rs 662 crore during the quarter gone by, and the rest of the amount we will induct in the future in the next few months in either one or more tranches".

An email sent by Autocar Professional to learn about areas of operations in which these investments have been made, remained unanswered till the time of publication. The report will be updated if and when there is any response from the company regarding it.

As per the latest  investor presentation made by the company, while Switch EiV22 and Switch EiV12-Standard are plying on roads of Mumbai, Hyderabad, and others; the company has lined up new products for the Indian market.

Whereas one of the products for the future includes Switch EiV 12- Ultra Low Entry, which is meant for metro cities, the other one has been named the Switch EiV7, which is a concept vehicle designed for urban commuting and was unveiled at the Auto Expo 2023.

For the UK market, the company already has Switch Metrocity and Switch Metrodecker. In the future, the company intends to launch the Switch e1 LHD for the European market. It was first unveiled at the European Mobility Expo in Paris in 2022.