Mahindra snatches 30 % of electric car order from Tata: Here’s how

Barely days after Tata Motors bagged the order to supply 10,000 electric cars to the Indian government, Mahindra is back in the game, and in a big way. In fact, Mahindra has just snatched 30 % of the initial electric car order from Tata Motors. This effectively means that Mahindra will supply nearly 150 electric cars, leaving Tata with 70 % of the order.

But how?

Well, there’s a clause in the EESL tender, which allows the second best bidder to get 40 % of the order if it matches the bid of the winning bidder. Tata Motors’ winning bid said that the Tigor Electric would be supplied to the government at 11.2 lakh rupees.

Mahindra has just managed to match this bid, and has walked away with 30 % of the order. The electric car that Mahindra is likely to supply could be the Verito Electric sedan, which is already in production. Tata, on the other hand, is yet to start production of the Tigor Electric.

The Verito Electric is currently available in the market is priced at 8.76 lakhs (ex-showroom Delhi) for the base E2 variant. This car uses a 72 Volt electric motor, which makes 41 Bhp-91 Nm. Range per charge is rated at 110 Kms, while top speed is pegged at 86 Kph.

We don’t know if Mahindra will supply the same car, in the same-spec, or whether there will be boosted performance and range. What we do know is the fact that Mahindra will have to give a comprehensive 5 year warranty on the electric car it supplies to the government.

The initial lot of 500 electric cars sourced by the government-run EESL (Energy Efficiency Services Limited) will consist of 350 cars from Tata, and 150 cars from Mahindra. Both Tata and Mahindra will have the opportunity to supply the rest of the 9,500 cars, in a 60:40 split. Here’s an official statement from EESL,

The purchase orders for supply of 9,500 electric vehicles in phase II will be issued on completion of phase I deliveries. Both qualified parties, Tata Motors and Mahindra, will have the opportunity to supply their respective number of vehicles, as per the terms of the tender and Mahindra matching the lowest bid pricing for phase II.

Mahindra has been an electric vehicle pioneer in India, after acquiring Bangalore-based Reva Electric a few years ago. Now, Reva Electric has been rebranded as Mahindra Electric and the automaker now sells 3 electric cars in  India – the E2O, the E2O plus and the Verito Electric. The automaker has also developed electric variants of light pick-up trucks such as the Jio and Maxximo. Soon, Mahindra will launch an electric three wheeler and a 32 seater bus.

Via LiveMint