Ashok Leyland seeks investors for EV arm; sets sight on used-vehicle biz

In the EV space, the firm plans to invest $150-200 million over five years and come out with its first electric light commercial vehicle in India by December end

After drawing its electric vehicles roadmap by setting up UK-based subsidiary Switch Mobility, commercial vehicle (CV) major Ashok Leyland said on Monday it is in talks with strategic and financial investors to raise funds for its EV arm.

The company is also looking to enter the used vehicle business and plans to launch two intermediate commercial vehicles (ICV) models in the compressed natural gas (CNG) segment by the fourth quarter of the current financial year. “We are certainly looking for investors. There are discussions going on with investors. What we are looking for is the right partners both strategic and financial,” said Gopal Mahadevan, whole-time director and chief financial officer of Ashok Leyland, addressing the media on Monday.

“The advantage of Indian design is that we will have a frugal base and model that can compete not only in India but globally as well,” said Vipin Sondhi, chief executive officer and managing director of Ashok Leyland, talking about the EV roadmap.

In the EV space, the company is planning to invest around $150-200 million in the next five years and has plans to come out with its first electric light commercial vehicle (e-LCV) in India by the end of December. “We are looking at investors into Switch for further development of new products, technologies and building busses and e-LCV not just for the market in India but for overseas as well,” Mahadevan added. The Hinduja group flagship company first evinced an interest in the EV space by acquiring British busmaker Optare Plc in 2013. The company already has expertise - it has more than 280 EVs in service covering over 26 million miles on a test basis.

The company said that it is also planning to mark its presence in the used vehicle business using the digital platforms and expects the move to have a positive effect on the primary demand for its vehicles. “We as a company would like to be in all the pertinent aspects, which will touch the customer. Used vehicles are another important part of it. We are planning to do it in a digital mode and not in the traditional way of buying and selling vehicles,” he added.

In a plan to expand its presence in clean energy, the company said it is also working on hydrogen-powered vehicles in addition to EVs and CNGs. Sondhi said that the company will look aggressively at CNG and will come up with more products in the segment.

The company’s domestic light commercial vehicles (LCV) volumes for Q2 FY’22 was seen at 13,328 units, posting a growth of 22 per cent compared to 10,952 units last year in the same quarter. Export volumes (MHCV & LCV) for Q2 FY’22 was also up by 49 per cent from 1,491 units during Q2 FY21 to 2,227 during the same period this fiscal.