Automobile Desk: Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), the famous British-Indian automobile company making luxury cars, is preparing to play a big bet in India's electric vehicle (EV) market. The company is going to launch its first fully electric car on Indian roads by the year 2027. Under this new EV strategy, Indian customers will get to see powerful premium models like Range Rover Electric and Range Rover Sport Electric. Not only this, the company has also prepared a plan to launch its new Jaguar GT in the Indian auto market next year itself.
JLR India Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Rajan Amba has described India as a very important and fast-growing market for the company's growth. According to him, considering the rapid increase in demand for luxury and premium electric vehicles in the country, this is the right time to launch its EV portfolio in India. The future of the auto industry is now moving towards completely sustainable energy and electric mobility. At present, JLR does not have any pure electric model available for sale in India, but in the last few months, the increased interest in EV among premium car buyers has boosted the company's morale.
In the initial phase, JLR will sell its new electric vehicles in India by directly importing them from abroad (as CBU units). The main objective of the company through this step is to deeply understand the preferences, mood and reaction of Indian buyers. However, Rajan Amba also says that JLR is entering India's luxury EV segment for the first time, so it is too early to make any firm predictions on the initial trends and response.
The pace of adoption of electric vehicles may have increased in India, but some practical challenges still remain in the luxury EV segment. The biggest problem among these is the limited availability of fast charging networks and customer skepticism regarding the resale value of used electric vehicles. The company believes that if the EV market in India is to grow rapidly, it is important to provide buyers with solid assurance in terms of strong charging infrastructure and resale value. It is a matter of relief that the coverage of charging network across the country is now much better than before.
Along with its EV plans, the company is also strengthening its retail network in India. JLR aims to expand its reach to every corner of the country in the coming times. The company expects the number of its authorized retail centers in India to increase to 40 by the end of 2026, from just 25 a year ago.
Apart from this, the company also seems to be getting direct benefits of the proposed and implemented Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between India and Britain. In recent times, there has been an increase in inquiries and bookings from customers after the prices of some selected models have been reduced. On the other hand, with the start of local assembling (CKD) of the company's prestigious 'Defender' brand of vehicles, its order book may see a jump of about 20 percent. The company has made it clear that whatever cost is saved by local assembling, its direct benefit is being passed on to Indian customers in the form of lower prices.