India must develop rare earth magnet ecosystem urgently: SIAM president

India must act decisively to fully leverage the vast opportunities that exist in India for developing the entire rare earth magnet ecosystem, SIAM President Shailesh Chandra said on Thursday.

The government is considering incentives for the production of rare earth minerals and magnets in response to China's restrictions on its global supply, which have disrupted the supply chain.

"Magnets have since snowballed and industry is presently trying to somehow manage its businesses," said Chandra here at the annual convention of the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM)  "... there are discussions underway to look at the possibility of developing the entire Rare Earth Magnet ecosystem in India. Therefore, to fully leverage the vast opportunities that exist in our country, we must act decisively," said Chandra, who is also Managing Director, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicle and Tata Passenger Electric Mobility.

 

Chandra further said the Indian automotive industry today stands at an "inflexion point", exporting at record levels, steadily advancing in localisation and building the foundation for future-ready technologies  However, India's share in global automotive trade remains modest.

Thus, "leaving substantial headroom for growth in both volume and value. Increasing exports is now a strategic imperative for deepening our integration into global value chains," he said.

To strengthen domestic manufacturing capabilities, the Government has put in place a robust policy landscape in recent years, e.g. PLI, that has provided considerable momentum for industry to remain resilient even in the challenging times.

"We need to, one, continue to strengthen advanced manufacturing capabilities to meet global standards, two, enhance investments in R&D or cleaner vehicle technologies, third, build resilient supplier ecosystems that are globally competitive on quality, cost and delivery," he said.