Reva eyes newer geographies

Mahindra Reva Electric Vehicles Pvt Ltd is looking at opportunities in several countries to cash in on the growing popularity of electric vehicles (EVs) globally.

“There is a big market for electric vehicles abroad and we are looking at these opportunities,” said Anand Mahindra, chairman and managing director, Mahindra Group, at the inauguration of Reva’s manufacturing facility near Bangalore.

The company sells EVs in 24 countries and is exploring more geographies having EV-friendly policies.

It is set to launch its new product Reva NXR (four-seater car) around Diwali this year.

“We will first launch this product in India and by middle of the next year will take it to different countries. The focus will be policies. To start off, we will look at the Scandinavian countries,” said Chetan Maini, founder chief technology officer and strategy at Mahindra Reva.

The largest market for Mahindra Reva so far has been London, where the company has sold 1,000 vehicles.

“We will re-emphasise our products in the countries we are present and also look at newer ones. We will also look at the strengths of both Mahindra group and Ssangyong to understand their presence in Europe and strategise accordingly,” Maini said.

With the new plant, which has been set up with an investment of Rs100 crore, the company has reached an annual manufacturing capacity of 30,000 units.

Reva plans to produce 6,000 units in the first year with an aim to touch full capacity in three years.

Meantime, domestic sales of EVs dropped 50% since April after the subsidy scheme by the government to boost sales of such vehicles lapsed on March 31.

“Sales dropped for few months post the expiry of the incentive scheme. However, we are seeing them recovering with fuel prices going up,” said R Chandramouli, chief operating officer, Mahindra Reva.