Volkswagen and Mahindra Charge Ahead in E-Mobility Partnership – Mahindra’s INGLO Platform to Roll Out Electric SUVs from December 2024
In a landmark move towards sustainable electric mobility, Volkswagen Group and Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. (M&M) have inked a groundbreaking supply agreement. The agreement solidifies Mahindra’s commitment to equip a specific range of its electric platform, INGLO, with components from Volkswagen’s Modular Electrification Toolkit (MEB) and unified cells.
Sourcing 50 GWh Battery From Volkswagen
This strategic collaboration marks a pivotal step forward in the joint vision for e-mobility between the two automotive giants. The comprehensive deal encompasses the supply of crucial electric components and unified cells, demonstrating the depth of commitment to advancing electric vehicle (EV) technology.
These electric components from Volkswagen’s MEB platform will populate Mahindra’s Born Electric INGLO platform. The agreement covers both supply of certain components and Volkswagen’s unified cells from MEB platform. What started as a partnering agreement and a term sheet in 2022 between Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd and Volkswagen Group, has now evolved into an active collaboration that could show expansion in the future.
Both companies have agreed to run the supply agreement for years to follow. The total energy capacity sourced from VW over the years might account for as much as 50 GWh. This may accelerate India’s electric mobility adoption and will benefit both companies along the way.
As of now, only Volkswagen Group brands like Volkswagen, Audi, Skoda and SEAT/CUPRA use Volkswagen’s MEB platform. These are Volkswagen’s internal brands. Mahindra is set to be the first external partner to use ground-breaking unified cells technology from Volkswagen. Other external partner in the race to source MEB components is Ford.
Mahindra INGLO SUVs Launch Timeline Out
Mahindra has revealed it will launch five all-electric SUVs based on INGLO platform. These are BE.05, BE.07, BE.09, XUV.e8 and XUV.e9. The press release also mentioned these INGLO platform-equipped e-SUVs will launch starting from December 2024. The first INGLO platform-equipped vehicle to launch is highly likely to be XUV.e8, which has been spotted testing on multiple occasions.
At Mahindra’s Future Scape event held in Johannesburg, South Africa, the company presentations demonstrated INGLO platform populated with BYD’s Blade cells. Where “Platform Business” is concerned, BYD’s Blade cells are a primary rival for Volkswagen’s MEB unified cells.
Mahindra is likely to be collaborating with different battery vendors depending upon the target market owing to availability, supply and market acceptance. After all, Mahindra has announced that the INGLO based vehicles will be a key stepping point in expanding the brand’s presence in international business, touching more lives globally.
Source: Electric - rushlane.com
