JSW-MG Motor deal likely in two months

livemint.com:

NEW DELHI : JSW Group may announce the purchase of a stake in MG Motor India as early as two months if the negotiations progress successfully, and the first JSW electric car could roll out from a factory as early as next year, two people familiar with the development said. The deal, which is likely to value MG Motor India at $1.2-1.5 billion, involves the initial purchase of a minority stake by JSW Group, with a firm plan to secure a majority stake in the automaker over time.

“If the deal is finalized, most likely by Diwali, the plan is to launch the first car in early 2024," one of the two people said on condition of anonymity. The person added that the group is parallelly working on a Plan B to partner with a foreign company, most probably a Chinese one, to launch its product in India if the talks with MG Motor fail.

“If the MG deal does not happen, the company will be looking at a partnership with a foreign player, and the product launch could happen only in 2026," said a second person on condition of anonymity. The first person said issues like technology transfer for electric vehicles (EVs) still need to be finalized.

“Issues still being discussed, as part of the deal, are the modalities of technology transfer for the EV technology and the issue of continuing with internal combustion engines that are part of the MG portfolio as of today. These issues and the JSW branding are also being discussed." The JSW Group is looking to enter the EV segment to capitalize on the rising trend.

It is estimated that India’s EV market, valued at $2 billion in 2023, will more than triple to $7.09 billion by 2025. The number of EVs is likely to increase to 50 million by 2030 from about 1.4 million as of August 2022, according to