Tata Motors prepares to take EVs global, launches new Nexon EV model for India

India's biggest electric vehicles maker is currently testing its EVs in some global markets and could even launch them abroad if the experiment is successful, Reuters reports.

Tata Motors' tests are in still in the early stages, and the company might need to make changes to the product based on vehicle performance before it can adopt a "go to market" strategy, Shailesh Chandra, chief of the carmaker's EV unit, said.

He refused to divulge the names of the export markets being considered, saying it was too early to discuss details, but said the company would have more clarity next year.

About the kind of evaluation that Tata Motors is doing with its vehicles and markers, Chandra said it was about " which markets I should be in, with what products and with what kind of distribution strategy."

On the status of these evaluations, Chandra said "We are assessing some markets, running our cars, discussing with business partners."

Meanwhile, India's largest EV company launched a new version of its Nexon electric SUV. The vehicle, with prices starting ₹15 lakh, has a range of 465 km on a single charge.

Tata Motors holds an 80 percent share of the India's EV market, which is small, but growing fast. 

EVs accounted for just two percent of India's total car sales last year, but the government plans to grow this figure to 30 percent by 2030. The country's market potential has also attracted foreign players, with BYD and Tesla among those reported to be considering gigafactories and/ or vehicle plants in the country.

Tata Motors itself plans to sell around 100,000 EVs this financial year (12 months to March 2024) and have 10 EVs in its portfolio over the next four years. The company also expects EVs to comprise a quarter of vehicle sales by 2025. Chandra said the company was on track to meet these targets.

The popularity of the Nexon EV could also be a catalyst for Tata Motors' plan to launch EV-only dealerships, Chandra said. The plan is for the group to set up exclusive EV dealerships in some Indian cities which can then be leveraged to springboard newer models.

"It is not going to be a pan-India roll out, it is going to be a progressive roll out. We want to understand fully the implication of an exclusive outlet versus what we were selling with the existing outlets," Chandra said.