Just a day after the Indian auto-giant Mahindra and Mahindra revealed two new electric SUVs, the company announced a Rs 4,500 crore commitment to new electric brands. This includes the end-to-end development and production of two ground-up electric labels.
For the FY2022–2027 period, Mahindra announced a total capex of Rs 16,000 crore for its EV business. The Rs 4,500 crore investment is part of it. Mahindra will also scale its Chakan plant to roll out 1.2 lakh units per year, according to the executive director of Mahindra and Mahindra, Rajesh Jejurikar.
Jejurikar said, “We have allocated Rs 4,500 crore investment for the two models. The investment would go into the overall development of the electric vehicles.”
The Mahindra executive also pointed to the increase in demand for EVs in the country, suggesting that the automaker is focusing on accessible lifestyle products. This hints at the possibility of more user-friendly EVs in development. Jejurikar also stressed that the company is looking at more affordable cars in an effort to “break all barriers”.
The Indian automaker on Tuesday revealed two new electric SUVs—the BE 6e and XEV 9e—the first of its offerings based on the all-new electric origin INGLO architecture. The BE 6e starts at Rs 18.90 lakh while the XEV 9e is priced from Rs 21.90 lakh, ex-showroom. Mahindra plans to roll out the e-SUVs in a phased manner in January 2025.
Mahindra and Mahindra now has one electric passenger vehicle in the market, the XUV400 based on the IC-engine XUV300. Unlike the XUV400, both the BE 6e and XEV 9e get more premium features, such as a 16-speaker immersive sound system from Harman Kardon with Dolby Atmos. Both new models provide a choice between the 59 kWh and 79 kWh battery variants, including 175 kW DC fast charging.
