JSW's newest EV bet: e-buses and e-trucks

livemint.com:

MUMBAI : Sajjan Jindal-led JSW Group is looking to finalize a partner to manufacture electric buses, and eventually electric trucks, as the conglomerate bolsters its plan to expand into the electric vehicles market to include commercial vehicles. The group will manufacture these electric buses and trucks in Odisha, where it has committed an investment of ₹40,000 crore to set up an integrated electric vehicle manufacturing facility, Parth Jindal, managing director JSW Cement & JSW Paints, said.

Jindal, along with Sajjan Jindal, is steering the steel behemoth’s entry into the automotive sector, particularly in the new energy vehicle, or NEV, space—a term popularised by Chinese manufacturers of electric vehicles, plug-in hybrids, and hydrogen-powered EVs. “We are learning the automotive industry and therefore we want to bring in partners.

There is a bunch of companies we are talking to," Jindal told Mint, adding, “We want to start with manufacturing electric buses, and then trucks. Our local cell-manufacturing will bring us a cost-advantage." Moreover, JSW is looking to set up a 6 GWh lithium-ion cell manufacturing plant in Odisha in about 18 months, eventually expanding it to 10 GWh.

The cell-to-pack battery manufacturing plant will be JSW Group’s first manufacturing facility in Odisha in the EV space. JSW has also applied to be selected for the government’s production-linked incentive scheme for advanced chemistry cells, and is hoping to receive incentives as it sets up its cell manufacturing facility.