CELEBRATING INDIA 2.0

As Skoda celebrates two years of its India 2.0 program, we speak to the new Skoda India Brand Director Petr Solc about their progress in the Indian market, and what we can expect from Skoda in the near future.

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India is undergoing a massive change with regard to EVs and emission requirements. Where do you see the future of the Skoda brand in the mid-to-long term, and what are the areas that you can explore further?

For me, electrification is definitely an exciting transformation that's inevitable - whether we like it or not. This is something that I realised while I was taking care of Northern Europe, and it all started a few years ago in Norway with some efforts and subsidies from the governments - both for end customers and companies - and as a result, if you look at the Norwegian market, 60% of new vehicles on sales are EVs. And now, it is spreading further in the UK, Netherlands, and Belgium. I can also see the beginning of electrification in India. Of course, it started with two and three-wheelers, but now the government is also focusing on electric buses and public transport, and the next step will be a more focused transformation of four-wheelers. So, I do believe that the EV transition is going to happen, and as the head of the Skoda brand in India, I would like to be a part of it. In conjunction with the Skoda board, back at headquarters, we are thinking of penetrating the EV market in the foreseeable future in India.