To introduce eco-friendly mobility solutions, Maruti Suzuki is betting on biogas, flex fuel, hybrid and Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) vehicles in the country.

The company will introduce its first electric vehicle offering in 2024-2025. It had earlier stated that the cost of acquiring electric vehicles is high due to the dependence on battery technology and its costs being higher.

“The infrastructure and cost might prevent the large-scale adoption of electric vehicles for a long time. Maruti Suzuki believes for emission reduction you have to be agnostic to technology. Till the time electric vehicles are mainstream you need to have intermittent technologies to manage emissions,” said Shashank Srivastava, Executive Director, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd to BusinessLine.

Read also: Suzuki Motor unveils concept electric SUV

Suzuki signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the National Dairy Development Board and Banas Dairy for biogas production and verification. The company is looking into having plants in multiple parts of the country for biogas generation and has invested in Fujisan Asagiri Biomass LLC., which makes power generation from biogas derived from cow dung in Japan.

“We believe that the biogas business in India not only contributes to carbon neutrality, but also promotes economic growth and contributes to the society of India. We are also given expanding the business to other farming areas in regions including Africa, ASEAN, and Japan in the future,” mentions a statement from Suzuki on its vision for 2030.

The Delhi-headquartered company showcased its flex-fuel product during the auto expo in January, while its CNG vehicle sales contributed nearly 20 per cent for the company in India.

“We are ready with E20 blend and can go up to E85 that will further be lower on emission and is also cheaper than importing expensive oils. This will also save a lot of foreign exchange,” added Srivastava.

E20 vehicles are a blend of ethanol and petrol with 20 and 80 per cent, respectively.

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