‘Time For EV Is Now’: MG Motor CCO Explains How Electric Cars Can Define Urban Mobility In India

MG Motors is planning to launch a new urban mobility EV in the coming quarter this year.

For an EV owner, the running cost of a car could be as low as Rs 1 per kilometre.

Source : Getty

From 2,000 passenger electric vehicles (EVs) in 2020 to 50,000 units in 2022, India has seen a great jump in EV sales and adoption across the country recently. This is largely thanks to work done by stakeholders and startups, as well as support coming in from the Centre in terms of policies, as per MG Motor Senior VP and CCO Gaurav Gupta. On the sidelines of TiECon Delhi-NCR 2023 on Saturday, Gupta outlined the trends dominating the EV sector now and how the company’s upcoming EV can help address them.

In February, MG Motor partnered with Nielsen to prepare an Urban Mobility Survey, which collected nearly 5,000 responses from car owners across eight cities including the likes of Ahmedabad, Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Kolkata, and more. The survey found that 88 per cent of people are driving their cars for 30 kilometres or less. About 70 per cent of people are either riding alone or with one co-passenger. Additionally, nearly 80 per cent are only carrying a single work/laptop bag. 

Gupta told ABP Live that nearly 90 per cent of respondents are concerned about parking within a city and over 50 per cent are worried about huge costs (amounting to over Rs 5,000 per month just on fuel). 

The survey makes it quite clear that when it comes to urban mobility, buyers are looking for cars that are not only fuel efficient but are also small and agile, which is what MG Motor will be looking to address.

As per Gupta, for an EV owner, the running cost of a car could be as low as Rs 1 per kilometre. "A lot of support is coming in from the government," said Gupta, which added with the work done by startups and stakeholders has brought "momentum" for EVs as a whole. "The time for EV is now," he said. 

Gupta added that MG Motor is looking to put the findings of the study to good use and launch an urban mobility-focused car “in the April-May-June quarter,” which will essentially be a city vehicle with trendy looks and electric, “to help owners save money on fuel and look cool,” said Gupta. 

Held on March 17 and March 18, the TiEcon Delhi-NCR 2023 summit looked at the multiple challenges faced by startups, thrown up by the post-pandemic geopolitical scenario and marked by a serious economic downturn.

The event featured a diverse lineup of speakers including Amitabh Kant (G20 Sherpa, Government of India), Deep Kalra (Founder and Chairman at MakeMyTrip Limited), Aman Gupta (Co-Founder and CMO, boAt Lifestyle), Aditya Ghosh (Founder, Homage and Co-Founder, AkasaAir), Shikhar Dhawan (Indian Cricketer), Alok Mittal (Co-founder and CEO at Indifi Tech), Apurva Chamaria(Head, Startups and VC at Google India), among others.