JSW MG Motor India plans to sell a million electric vehicles by 2030

'The percentage of stake we hold is not as important as bringing the highest and best-available technology cars into India', says Sajjan Jindal

Sajjan Jindal, chairman of JSW Group and Parth Jindal, director of JSW Group, have launched JSW MG Motor India, with plans to sell 1 million electric vehicles (EVs) by 2030. The joint venture (JV) with SAIC Motor Corporation of China intends to introduce the Cyberster, an electric sports car, to India by early 2025. The JV plans to invest up to $5 billion by 2030. At a media round-table held in Mumbai on Wednesday, SAJJAN JINDAL, PARTH JINDAL, and RAJEEV CHABA, chief executive officer (CEO) emeritus of MG Motor India, outlined their vision to transform the Indian EV sector, similar to what Maruti Suzuki India did in the 1980s by launching affordable, small cars. Edited excerpts:

What will be the equity structure of the new JV and what is the investment plan for the EV business?
 

Parth Jindal: JSW Group will hold a 35 per cent stake in the JV, with an Indian financial investor holding an 11 per cent stake, dealers holding a 3 per cent stake, and 5 per cent allocated for employees. Thus, the majority stake will be held by Indians in the JV.

We plan to invest Rs 5,000 crore in the JV, covering all the products that MG Motor India will introduce in India. We plan to launch a new car every three to four months starting from the upcoming festival season later this year. Our aim is to sell 1 million electric cars by 2030.

Rajeev Chaba: We wanted to incentivise our dealers, partners, and employees. This JV is unprecedented in the automotive industry, providing a win-win deal for all stakeholders. The investment will facilitate capacity expansion from 100,000 cars to 200,000 cars.

Sajjan Jindal: The percentage of stake we hold is not as important as bringing the highest and best-available technology cars into India, manufacturing and designing them in India, and providing them to customers at the lowest price. With MG, my dream is to create a Maruti moment in new energy vehicles.

JSW Group recently announced massive investments in Odisha in the EV sector. How will the Odisha investment impact the new JV?
 

Parth: We have announced comprehensive investments in the entire EV ecosystem in Odisha, to be made by JSW Group independently. This will include battery manufacturing and manufacturing commercial EVs. While Odisha may become a future location for a manufacturing site for JSW MG Motor India, as of now, the investments in Odisha are solely from JSW Group.

The products made in Odisha would cater to the JV. We are also considering supplying steel to the JV from our steel plants.

The Indian government has introduced a new EV policy to encourage EV car manufacturing. What’s your view on the policy?

Parth: The policy appears attractive for the premium segment, but we need to study the fine print. We must understand how the policy will impact our battery manufacturing plans. Once we have more clarity, we will decide on the next course of action.

The new EV policy may help Tesla set up a base in India. What will be your message to Elon Musk (CEO of Tesla)?
 

Sajjan: Welcome to India.