JSW MG Motor takes steps to speed up EV adoption

The company introduced 'eHUB by MG' for locating, reserving, and paying for charging stations.

It has already partnered with charging infrastructure providers like Adani Total Energies Ltd (ATEL), BPCL, Chargezone, Glida, HPCL, Jio-BP, Shell, Statiq and Zeon.

It has also partnered with TERI and Lohum for its project REVIVE to repurpose used EV batteries.

“The project extracts healthy battery components and builds energy solutions for use in schools and community centres... The pilot at a Mukteshwar school demonstrates the practical impact of this innovative approach to environmental sustainability,” JSW MG Motor India said in a statement.

Moreover, a dedicated EV education and knowledge platform for electric cars -- EVPEDIA -- has also been introduced offering practical tools like the cost of ownership tools and calculators, a repository of government policies, and a collection of publications and research papers, the company said.

"With initiatives such as our unified charging platform, battery second-life project, EV education, and the MG-Jio ICP, we are empowering the industry as well as our customers with smarter, more sustainable choices," said Gaurav Gupta, Chief Growth Officer at JSW MG Motor India.

The carmaker said all upcoming MG cars will feature the MG-Jio Innovative Connectivity Platform (MG-Jio ICP) -- an interactive gaming, learning and entertainment technology stack -- as a standard.

“Globally, new-energy vehicles or NEVs are gathering momentum, and charging infrastructure is keeping pace to enable this growth,” said Rajeev Chaba, CEO Emeritus at MG Motor India.

Moreover, renewable energy sources are being utilised to power this infrastructure, he noted.

“In India too, the EV sector has accelerated at a tremendous pace, and this growth is set to continue further,” Chaba pointed out.

He said conventional internal combustion engine or ICE technology puts a huge pressure on India's foreign exchange with a notable USD 200 billion annual import bill for crude oil, and hence, the transition to electric vehicles is a logical one.

“EV sales in the passenger vehicle segment in India have grown significantly from being pegged at 5,154 units in 2020-21 to over 90,000 units in 2023-24.

“In line with this growth in EV sales, charging infrastructure too has kept pace with almost 12,000 chargers in the country today,” Chaba said while adding that JSW MG Motor India has been supporting this transition towards cleaner mobility, and that the company's endeavour is to build a robust EV ecosystem.

“EVs make up around 40 per cent of JSW MG Motor India’s present sales, and we are committed to drive these volumes even further,” he noted.

The company plans a serious new-model assault in the coming months, with its next EV offering - MG Windsor - slated to be introduced next month.

The company says EVs are the most preferred sustainable mobility solutions with their zero-tailpipe emissions, thus, enabling cleaner transportation within cities.

To prove its point and answer some common apprehensions around EVs, JSW MG Motor India quoted a recent study conducted by IIT Delhi to compare the various attributes of ICE, EV, and hybrid vehicles, and looked at them from a multi-criteria perspective to assess the overall sustainability of each technology.

The study claims to have found EVs as the most preferred sustainable alternatives across price segments for local mobility requirements within Indian cities.