'Even I can't afford your car': What Gadkari advises Mercedes-Benz. Read here
Premium- Gadkari was speaking at the Mercedes-Benz EQS 580 4MATIC EV roll-out event, when he asked the German premium carmaker to consider manufacturing more cars in India
MUMBAI : Mercedes-Benz on Friday rolled out the first assembled in India assembled EQS 580 4MATIC EV. This electric vehicle (EV) was deployed from the Chakan manufacturing facility in Pune. Union minister for for Road Transport and highways, Nitin Gadkari attended the event and urged the German luxury and commercial car manufacturer to produce more cars within India.
Gadkari was speaking at the Mercedes-Benz EQS 580 4MATIC EV roll-out event, when he asked the German premium carmaker to consider manufacturing more cars in India in order to reduce the cost along with increasing affordability
"You increase the production, only then it is possible to reduce cost. We are middle-class people, even I can't afford your car," the minister said.
Mercedes-Benz began their electric vehicle journey in India with the launch of its all-electric SUV EQC as a fully imported unit in October 2020 priced at ₹1.07 crore.
According to Union Minister Gadkari, there are a total of 15.7 lakh registered electric vehicles in the country.
There is a huge market with the overall EV sales rising 335%, he said, adding that with the express highways coming up in the country, Mercedes-Benz India will get a good market for these cars.
The Indian Automobile size currently stands at ₹7.8 lakh crore, in which exports are to the tune of ₹3.5 lakh crore and "my dream is to make it a ₹15-lakh crore industry", he noted.
Gadkari also mooted the idea of Mercedes-Benz setting up joint ventures for establishing vehicle scrapping units, which will help the company reduce its parts' cost by as much as 30 per cent.
"As per our records, we have 1.02 crore vehicles ready for scrapping. We have only 40 units. My estimate is that we can open four scrapping units in one district. And so easily, we can open 2,000 such units," he said.
"My suggestion is that you can set up some such units which will give you raw materials for recycling which will reduce your component cost by 30%."
The government is encouraging such facilities, "and it is important that we will get cooperation from your side", the minister said.
The EQS 580 4MATIC offers an 857 kms range (ARAI certified). The high power density of the lithium-ion battery comes with a usable energy content of 107.8 kWh and is equipped with a powerful 400-volt battery manufactured using the latest lithium-ion technology.
The latest EV from the German car maker comes with a price tag of ₹1.55 crore. The EQS 580 joins the company's EQC SUV and AMG EQS53 4MATIC flagship EV.
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