TI Clean Mobility Pvt Ltd (TICMPL), an electric vehicle arm of Murugappa Group’s engineering firm Tube Investments of India Ltd., is expected to launch its first electric small commercial vehicle (e-SCV) by the end of Q1 of next year.
The e-SCV is being developed by Coimbatore-based Jayem Automotives Pvt Ltd, in which TICMPL picked up a 50 per cent stake last month.
TICMPL said that a subsidiary, in which TICMPL will have 80 per cent and J Anand, Managing Director of Jayem, will have 20 per cent, will be formed to commercialise e-SCV.
Homologation in December
“Jayem, which has strong automotive R&D capabilities, has already developed a prototype in the small commercial vehicle space. We will be going for homologation during the December or January period. It may hit the market by the end of Q1 of next year, Vellayan Subbiah, Executive Vice Chairman of Tube Investments of India Ltd., said during the company’s Q1FY24 earnings call.
The e-SCV business will combine Jayem’s design and R&D capabilities in concept creation, design, development, and prototyping with TICMPL’s manufacturing and marketing expertise.
Electric small commercial vehicles will be TICMPL’s fourth offering in the EV segment. It has already entered the electric three-wheeler, electric tractor, and electric heavy truck segments.
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While the company has started retailing its electric autorickshaw, it is hoping to take orders after the completion of trials. “We have just started giving trucks to some customers for trials. In this business, we will sell directly to the prospective buyers,” stated Subbiah.
Its electric truck business will be spearheaded by IPL Tech Electric Pvt Ltd, in which TICMPL has a 65.2 per cent stake. It will focus on 55-tonne trucks, covering short haulage operations for the iron and steel, cement, and construction industries. These e-trucks will be made at the manufacturing facility in Manesar, Haryana.
Elaborating on distribution models for other EV segments, he said e-three-wheelers and e-small commercial vehicles would be marketed through the retail network in urban and suburban locations, while electric tractors would be sold through dealers mostly in rural centres.
The company has already spent about ₹800 crore in product development and associated areas in three segments: e-three-wheelers, e-tractors, and e-heavy trucks. It is likely to incur another ₹200 crore in the EV business.
TICMPL has built a capacity of about 70,000 units a year for electric three-wheelers, while electric tractors’ capacity is about 25,000 units a year. For electric heavy commercial vehicles, the current capacity is 3,000–3,600 units a year.