RARE EARTH ELEMENTS, RARER SUPPLY

CHINA'S CURBS ON RARE-EARTH ELEMENT EXPORTS HAVE HIT INDIA'S AUTO MANUFACTURERS HARD. WHAT LIES AHEAD?

- RISHI KANT

WHEN MARUTI SUZUKI, India's largest maker of passenger vehicles, reported its sales figures for May recently, the air was fraught with uncertainty. China's tight curbs on the export of rare-earth elements—which came into effect in April—were ringing alarm bells across the Indian automobile industry.

Therefore, it did not come as a surprise when Rahul Bharti, executive director of corporate affairs at Maruti Suzuki, faced a barrage of questions on the runway the carmaker had before the disruption in the supply of rare-earth magnets began impacting production, especially that of the e-Vitara, its first battery electric vehicle (BEV) slated for a launch in September. The vehicle is pivotal to Suzuki's ambitions of making India a production hub for BEVs. Bharti said the company will inform all stakeholders should there be any impact.

Barely 10 days later, reports emerged that Maruti Suzuki had slashed production targets of the e-Vitara by two-thirds in H1FY26. A significant portion of the vehicles had been earmarked for export to key markets, including Europe and Japan.