EV Sales: Mahindra Sets Steep Target; BE 6, XEV 9e Will 'Add Spurt To Segment'

PUNE (Anirban Mitra): Mahindra and Mahindra sold 7,105 units of electric cars in the calendar year 2024, according to Vahan data. The SUV maker is bullish about EV sales and targets 5,000 units a month, a senior official told NDTV Auto on the sidelines of the launch of BE 6 and XEV 9e on Tuesday.

"We would want to achieve a volume of 5,000 vehicles per month in the initial phase of launch," said Veejay Nakra, President, automotive division, Mahindra & Mahindra. The company launched the top-end variants of BE 6 and XEV 9e at Rs 26.90 lakh and Rs 30.50 lakh (ex-showroom) respectively. Based on the born-electric IN-GLO platform, the SUVs are available in two battery pack choices and three variants. Bookings will commence on February 14 and deliveries in early-March.

Market Status

The Indian electric passenger vehicles recorded the best-ever sales in the calendar year 2024. The segment grew by 20 per cent in CY 2024 with 99,068 units sold. Tata Motors led the pack with 61,435 units, followed by JSW-MG Motor (21,464) and Mahindra and Mahindra (7,105). Notably, Tata Motors has the largest portfolio of EVs, ranging from Tiago EV to Curvv EV. JSW-MG sells Windors EV, ZS EV and Comet EV in India. Mahindra and Mahindra currently has XUV400 in its electric portfolio. Other players in the top five list are BYD (2,819) and Citroen(1,873).

Also Read: Mahindra XEV 9E, BE 6 Top Variants' Prices, Booking Schedule Revealed

Mahindra Bullish On EV Market

Mahindra and Mahindra expects higher adoption of electric vehicles due to two key factors: new products and born-electric architecture. Nakra said, "It's fair to say the existing products in the electric passenger vehicle space were driven by ICE vehicles which were EV-adapted. Basically, customers used to get similar design and features at a higher price. With some of the recent launches, you can already see numbers start seeing the numbers of the newer vehicles, demand moving towards electric origin SUVs."

Mahindra and Mahindra claims to democratise technology and remove range anxiety with the introduction of BE 6 and XEV 9e. According to Nakra, the growth in a category is driven by how new products shape it.

He said, "We are bullish with these two new launches, we will further add spurt to segment and category. There are many other new launches scheduled by other automobile players and we welcome the competition into the category. The category right now needs players to come in with cutting-edge technology and new products. That's when the category takes off and everybody benefits from that."

Market Outlook:

Several key players, including Maruti Suzuki and Hyundai, are set to introduce electric offerings at the upcoming Bharat Mobility Show. Maruti Suzuki' e-Vitara and Hyundai's Creta Electric are expected to be priced similar to the Mahindra BE 6. Toyota has also unveiled the Electric Urban Cruiser which shares parts with e Vitara. Mahindra's two more products on the IN-GLO platform are in the works. Tata Motors is also planning to introduce Sierra EV and Harrier EV in coming months.