Having committed USD 600 million in the Indian market, Renault Nissan Automotive India – the Franco-Japanese alliance has dropped its plans of launching an electric vehicle based on the Common Module Family-A platform.
Sources say that the entry EV, mooted last year as part of its next steps for the Indian market was not viable and the company is instead looking at a B segment EV above 4 metre, to challenge the likes of Maruti Suzuki’s ev-X EV as well as Hyundai Creta EV. Spokespersons from Renault India and Nissan Motor India said that they don’t comment on speculation.
The Renault Nissan Alliance has already started engaging with homegrown cell and battery manufacturers to ensure an extremely accessible price.
The target price set internally is around Rs 15 lakh to Rs 20 lakh for its EVs and hence there is a huge emphasis on localisation and local development by its R&D centre– Renault Nissan Technology Business Centre India. The vehicle is likely to be powered by an LFP battery and may have a range of 300 kms per charge.
The alliance partners may utilise the CMF-B platform for its EVs – which is already the architecture shortlisted for the upcoming mid-size SUVs for both Renault and Nissan brands.
While the project has been delayed a little, work on the CMF-B EV has already kicked off globally and is slated to be ready for market launch in 2026-2027.
The electric vehicles should have a minimum localisation of 70% and there should be a significant export plan for the same, to ensure a viable business case. The volume of electric vehicles is still very low in India – but strategically a battery electric vehicle is needed to ensure that the future CAFÉ scores are met, or else the alliance partners may have to cough up significant penalties, said one of the four people in the know of the matter.
Apart from electric, Renault Nissan’s India office has been pushing for the roll out of the CNG powertrain which will be made available in the Triber in 2025. There is also strong demand for localisation of hybrid powertrains as well, to ensure strong competitiveness.
While the first tranche is towards 4 SUVs – 2 each for Renault and Nissan – there are a series of mid-size SUVs, that Renault is building globally as part of its internalisation strategy, which India should get in the future.