Shailesh Chandra has been serving as President – Electric Mobility Business & Corporate Strategy at Tata Motors since June 2018. In his current role, Chandra spearheads the electric vehicle operations of Tata Motors. Prior to the current role, Chandra had served the company as Head – Corporate Strategy & Business Transformation from April 2016 to May 2018. Chandra has handled diverse responsibilities within the company, which he has been part of since October 1995. He has completed a Fulbright-Nehru-CII Fellowships for Leadership from the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon University. Chandra has a B.Tech degree in Mechanical Engineering from IIT, Varanasi.
The electric SUV space appears to be heating up in India. Can you give us your perspective on the positioning of Tata Nexon EV SUV?
The Tata Nexon Electric SUV is in a different band and will be an optimal solution for electric vehicle (EV) consumers. Our latest offering will be in the ₹15-17 lakh range, while the currently available electric SUVs in the country are priced significantly higher. Performance-wise, the Nexon EV SUV is as good as any other vehicle, priced over ₹25 lakh in India. I believe the centre of attraction of e-SUVs will be around this kind of solution because 90 % of Indian consumers are buying vehicles priced under ₹20 lakh. More importantly, there is no space for vehicles over that price bracket. So, you have to optimise the car to a level, where it starts making business sense.
Alternate propulsion technologies, including EVs, are important to reduce CO2 emissions. What’s your take on the transition the country needs to make?
This story is from the February 2020 edition of Auto Tech Review.
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This story is from the February 2020 edition of Auto Tech Review.
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