The company is unwilling to unveil any PHEV vehicles in India and is now analyzing the momentum behind the sales growth of hybrid cars for the coming 6-8 months.
A day after Chinese electric vehicle giant BYD’s investment proposal was rejected by the union government, Head of Electric Passenger Vehicles, Rajeev Chauhan, told the media that before launching the first plug-in hybrid car in the country, the company will closely monitor the sales performance of the hybrid vehicles in the coming 6-8 months.
In an interview with a business daily, Chauhan added that the company will concentrate on electric vehicles for a short time and then make further decisions after six months. The growth of the hybrid has been very recent, and hence, time is required to understand the market growth and statistics. As of now, no major car manufacturers have introduced PHEVs in India.
Over the past few months, sales of hybrid cars have grown tremendously compared to EVs, which recently witnessed a slump. A day ago, the company launched its new electric multi-purpose vehicle, eMax 7, at a price tag of Rs 26.9 lakh. Although the company has a wide range of hybrid cars for global sales, it now only sells EVs in India. The company wants to understand the market’s maturity before unveiling PHEV vehicles.
Speaking of the company’s expansion plans and strategies for the Indian market, it wants to rely on an import-only strategy and does not want to set up any new manufacturing unit in the country. Interestingly, the company wants to grow by selling its China-made models in the country without any investments.
Currently, BYD sells three models in India, which are manufactured in China. It plans to sell 3,500 units before the year ends, a 40 percent increase compared to the 2,500 units sold last year.
