Industry
Mumbai: City to get 300 e-buses, 100 for Navi Mumbaiedit
BEST is among five city transport undertakings allotted the most electric vehicles (300) under the Central government’s FAME-2 (Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles) scheme. The Rs10,000 crore scheme was launched recently to boost electric mobility and increase electric vehicles in commercial fleets.
Kochi: Swanky ‘bus ports’ coming upedit
If everything falls as per the plans of the transport department, passengers could soon enjoy the comfy of ‘busports’ with amenities on par with airports. The state government finally initiated the process to set up ‘Bus Ports and Logistics Hubs’ across the state by appointing three experienced consultants to prepare Detailed Project Report (DPR).
Auto component cos ride EV waveedit
As India readies an electric vehicle (EV) rush, its top component manufacturers are changing gears to capture a share of the EV pie — both at home and abroad. Companies including Rico Auto, Bharat Forge, Samvardhana Motherson Group and Pricol have all announced they are either acquiring EV tech companies or ramping up their component business with an eye on the global market as well.
What’s ailing India’s automobile marketedit
India’s automobile market is in deep trouble. Fresh figures released by the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers show that sales of passenger vehicles in July plummeted 31% from the offtake a year earlier. This marks the ninth straight month of decline, and the steepest in about two decades. Given the alarming fall, it isn’t surprising that carmakers have intermittently been halting production until dealers clear inventories.
Vehicle dispatches to dealers fall 19%, worst drop in 19 yearsedit
The auto slowdown intensified in July with sales dropping 18.7%, the biggest monthly decline in nearly 19 years, compared with 12.3% in the previous month, leaving the industry with a massive stockpile ahead of the festival season and generating demands for succour from the government.
‘Electric cars solution to air pollution’edit
Minister for science and technology Michael Lobo said that air pollution had become a major concern in most developing countries due to the increasing number of petrol and diesel-operated vehicles, due to which countries in the west were moving toward electric vehicles.
Competition
Battery swapping for electric vehiclesedit
Battery swapping in electric vehicles will be a big trend and we are already seeing this transition. However, we can only benefit if connector technology is made universal and OEM agnostic. This is particularly important for public transportation that uses heavy batteries. It will ensure lesser downtime. To complement connector technology, we need powerful storage technology that allows for unlimited high power charge and discharge even within a weak grid.
Magenta Power in talks with OEMs, govt agencies to deploy EV charging stationsedit
Maxson Lewis, Managing Director of Magenta Power, told BusinessLine that the company has thus far deployed its solutions in seven cities and is now seeking to expand its presence. The company, which had had a tie-up with HPCL, sees immense scope for these charging stations.
How Euler Motors is using EVs to power last-mile delivery for large firmsedit
India’s attempt to push the adoption of electric vehicles (EVs) has opened a floodgate of opportunities for start-ups working in this space towards creating the building blocks for its success. While players like Ather Energy and a handful of established auto-makers are making e-scooters and cars for passengers (PVs), Euler Motors, a year-and-a-half-old start-up is looking at solving last-mile delivery and logistics through EVs.
EV-charging ecosystem firm BrightBlu starts operations in Indiaedit
The advance of electric mobility is bringing a variety of industry stakeholders together, and in the world of start-ups, new-age organisations are looking to make the most of their capabilities. Asia Electric, an EV charging solutions company and DrivAMP, a smart charging technology provider, have announced the merger of their business operations. The new entity will now operate under the BrightBlu brand.
Renault plans to launch new SUV and EV in India by 2022edit
Renault India seems to be pursuing the Indian automobile market rather aggressively. The subsidiary of the French carmaker, which had been battling sales crunch, is hoping to improve its position in the industry on account of 2019 Duster, which was launched last month, and its upcoming vehicle–Triber– which is slated to be launched on 28 August.
In Transition Towards Electric Vehicles, Two-Wheelers Will Convert First: Naveen Munjaledit
While many believe that the transition of the Indian automotive industry from the Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) powered vehicles to Electric Vehicles (EV) is already underway, almost everyone has something to say about it. That’s not it, amongst all the talk around electric vehicles, there has been several changes and announcements in order to promote the EV industry. But how much of that has been taking place on the ground? How is the consumer sentiment towards these vehicles and what are the steps that should be taken in order to help the industry furthe
International
Sales of electric vehicles in China are finally slowingedit
China’s electric-car market is taking a breather after two years of rapid growth. Monthly sales of new-energy vehicles (NEV), including battery and hybrids, declined 4.7% from July 2018 to 80,000 units last month, the latest data from China’s biggest auto industry association (link in Chinese) show. The last time the sector posted a monthly decline in sales was in January 2017, when the number plunged 74.4% from a year earlier, as people were waiting for the government to clarify its subsidy policy for the year.
Platinum giant wants in on batteries to ease electric car threatedit
The world’s top platinum and palladium supplier has an answer to the electric-car boom that may pose a long-term threat to its biggest market: invent a new battery. Anglo American Platinum Ltd. wants to develop a lithium battery that uses platinum-group metals instead of cobalt and nickel. The aim is to create a new multi-billion dollar source of demand for the metals as electric vehicles reduce the need for traditional fuel autocatalysts.