The Indian EV space is all set to see more entrants coming into the market in 2019. At the moment, there are just a handful of products from Mahindra Electric which are available for retail customers. However, Tata Motors, Nissan, Audi and Hyundai seem determined to bring in attractive offerings this year.
It is well known that first EV from Hyundai will be the Kona SUV (scheduled for a launch in H2 – 2019), however what is interesting is that Hyundai is planning to manufacture the EV in India. In a recent Investor summit, Hyundai announced that it will be bringing in an additional investment of INR 7,000 crores which will result in additional employment opportunities for 1,500 individuals.
This investment will be used to equip the existing plant to manufacture the EV and ramp-up the total production capacity for Hyundai. Currently, Hyundai’s production capacity stands at 7 lakh units per annum, which will to go up to 8 lakh units post the infusion of these additional funds.
Hyundai mentioned that the initial goal of the investment is to make products for domestic consumption however later the electric Kona(s) produced in the plant will get exported too. Talking about the Kona, it is sold in various configurations globally. India will be getting the EV version which will be priced somewhere around INR 25 lakhs.
The model which Indian market is expected to get has a range of 350 kms and comes with a fast charging capacity which allows a 0-80% charge in just an hour. Total power output of the motor is 136 PS while the max torque output stands at 395 Nm.
The motor draws power from a 39kWh battery pack. Internationally, there is also a variant with a longer range and a larger battery pack, however it is highly unlikely that it will come to India as it will come with a higher price tag and hence, reduced interest from potential buyers.
