Volkswagen, Mahindra deepen electric vehicle component cooperation

VOLKSWAGEN and Mahindra and Mahindra on Monday (Aug 15) expanded their cooperation and signed a term sheet under which the German carmaker will supply electric components to its Indian peer.

The agreement covers components of Volkswagen's open platform for electric vehicles (EVs), called MEB, to be supplied to Mahindra's new electric platform INGLO, the companies said in a joint statement.

The INGLO platform, which will power all of Mahindra's EVs, offers options ranging from 60-80 kilowatt hour (kWh) battery capacity and fast-charging of up to 80 per cent in less than 30 minutes, Mahindra said, without specifying the range of the EVs.

Tata Motors, which currently dominates India's EV market, says its Nexon EV's 40.5 kWh battery offers a range of 437 kilometres.

The cooperation aims for a volume of more than 1 million units over lifetime and includes the equipment of 5 all-electric sports utility vehicles (SUV) based on INGLO, the companies said.

"The MEB Electric Platform and its components are key to affordable sustainable mobility around the globe," Volkswagen management board member Thomas Schmall said.

"The partnership not only demonstrates that our platform business is highly competitive, but also that the MEB is well on track to become 1 of the leading open platforms for e-mobility."

Volkswagen and Mahindra in May said they were exploring a partnership in the supply of electric components, making Mahindra the second large customer for the MEB platform after Ford.

They said at the time they would finalise the agreement by the end of 2022.

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Mahindra has said it expects electric models to make up between 20 per cent and 30 per cent of its total SUV sales by March 2027. The company sells some of India's most popular combustion engine SUVs, including the Scorpio and Thar. REUTERS