Budget 2011: Lukewarm response to sops for hybrids

The budget announced several sops for companies willing to build hybrid and electric vehicles indigenously. However, the industry is far from excited.

Maruti Suzuki India chairman RC Bhargava said though Suzuki Motor Corp and Maruti have been working jointly to develop hybrid technology, it is still way off commercial production stage. Maruti did showcase a hybrid version for SX4 during the Commonwealth Games last year, but even this car is not being produced commercially.

But Arun Jaura, VP - technology and head of Eaton India Engineering, said the announcements will spur development of indigenous hybrids.

“These provisions will also create better opportunities for supply chain and vendor development for hybrids and allied mobility solutions.”

Eaton is also developing some commercial vehicle hybrids.
For all that, however, only a handful of local companies have even begun work on developing hybrids.

Tata Motors and Ashok Leyland have individually developed hybrid buses, while Mahindra & Mahindra has developed a hybrid Scorpio and now also owns electric car maker Reva. TVS Motor Company has also developed a hybrid two-wheeler.Since there was no change in the customs duty on completely built unit (CBU) imports of hybrids, Toyota Kirloskar Motors’ vice chairman Vikram Kirloskar said there was a plan to begin manufacturing the Prius, world’s  most successful hybrid, in India.

Currently Toyota imports Prius and pays 105% levy on the product.
General Motors India’s president & managing director Karl Slym said his company would showcase an electric vehicle sometime later this year but there were no plans to launch it in India just yet.