Tata Motors to continue spending Rs 2,000 cr per yr on new CVs, equipments

Tata Motors will continue to invest around Rs 2,000 crore annually on the development of new commercial vehicles and capital equipment as the company works on a gamut of technologies to drive towards sustainable mobility, according to its Executive Director Girish Wagh.

The company's commercial vehicle (CV) division is working on a variety of technologies ranging from alternate fuel to zero emission battery electric, fuel cell electric and hydrogen ICE. 

 

"We are working on all the technologies, whether it is alternate fuel and even in zero emission, we are working on battery electric. We are working on fuel cell electric. We are also working on H2 ICE (hydrogen internal combustion engine)," Wagh told PTI on the sidelines of the Auto Expo, held as part of the Bharat Mobility Global Expo 2025 here.

At the expo, the company displayed a range of CVs based on various fuel technologies -- from diesel, biodiesel, CNG, LNG, ethanol, flex fuel, battery electric to H2 ICE.

Asked how much investment the company will put on new product development, Wagh said, "We continue to spend roughly around Rs 2,000 crore per year on products and capital equipment, and we will continue to be ballpark in that region."  Within that, he added, "I would say upwards of 40 per cent is actually being spent on all these new technologies, whether it is electrification or ADAS (advanced driver-assistance system) or connected vehicle platform."  Explaining the rationale for the company investing on a variety of technologies, Wagh said, "Battery electric is going to work on the lighter side of the vehicles, and also for a predetermined kind of a route within a city or city to semi-urban area."  For longer distance and heavy duty, he said, "We need a hydrogen kind of technology and that is what it appears now. Therefore, we are working on all these technologies."  Moreover, he said, "Since the transition (zero emission) is not going to happen immediately, we've also been working on all the alternate fuels, which is where the transition will happen through. Therefore, we have invested in technologies which will address all these requirements."  At the ongoing expo, Tata Motors showcased 14 CVs with ADAS features. It also showcased the intra EV -- an electric pickup and next-generation hydrogen-powered Prima Truck -- among others.

Wagh said Tata Motors has undertaken a brand repositioning for its CVs, keeping in tune with the changing demographics of India and aspirations of the people.

"The country and its youth are becoming more aspirational. What we've seen is that the expectation of customers, especially the younger lot, as also the other stakeholders, whether it is dealers and other stakeholders who help us do business, their expectations have been changing. So from that perspective, therefore, we have decided to refine our value proposition and have come up with this positioning as 'Better Always'," Wagh said.

Under this, he said, "As a company, we will continue to strive to do better every day for the customers and for other stakeholders. This will also come with a lot of growth mindset, agility and technology focus."  Internally, he said the company is also undergoing a "very bold" transformation in the area of technology and also addressing three mega trends of sustainability, safety and digital and artificial intelligence.

"So these three mega trends, the changing customer expectations, we are addressing through a bold transformation called 'Better Always'," Wagh added.