Autobayng News Team
Moderated by Atul Jairaj of Deloitte India, the panel featured leaders from Olektra Greentech, ACMA, ZF Commercial Vehicles, and Ola Electric.“>
India’s electric vehicle (EV) ecosystem has moved beyond early adoption and is now firmly focused on achieving scale, localisation and global competitiveness, industry leaders said during a ETAuto’s EV Conclave panel discussion on “Achieving local scale in India with next-generation EV components”.Moderated by Atul Jairaj, Partner, Deloitte India, the panel brought together Mahesh Babu, Managing Director, Olectra Greentech; Vinnie Mehta, Director General, Automotive Component Manufacturers Association (ACMA); Shankar Venkatachalam, Vice President – OE Sales & Marketing, ZF Commercial Vehicles; and Dr SJ Dhinagar, Senior Vice President and Head – Vehicle Engineering, Ola Electric.Panelists agreed that ‘scale’ is no longer just about volumes, but about the ability to compete globally on cost, quality and time, while building resilient supply chains and strong local capabilities.
From localisation to capability building
Dhinagar said that scale in EVs must be viewed across multiple dimensions, including production volumes, localisation of hardware and software, and availability of skilled talent. He noted that while battery packs are already localised, opportunities are emerging across the battery value chain, including precision manufacturing for components such as separators, casings and tooling.“There is far more that can be localised than what appears on paper. Adjacent industries are beginning to step in, and this will accelerate over the next few years,” he said, adding that some active materials will still take time to develop domestically.
Cost, resilience and exports
ZF’s Venkatachalam said that scale enables cost competitiveness and strengthens resilience against geopolitical and supply chain shocks. He added that building domestic capability also opens doors to exports, citing examples of India-made components finding acceptance in Europe and North America.Mahesh Babu of Olectra Greentech stressed the importance of leadership-led risk-taking and collaboration with local suppliers. Drawing from his experience, he said successful EV programmes have shown that indigenous development is possible even without regulatory mandates, provided there is long-term commitment from OEMs.
Rethinking ‘indigenisation’
ACMA’s Vinnie Mehta argued that the industry must move beyond the traditional idea of indigenisation towards design-led innovation and intellectual property creation. “India is already a strong export hub, with nearly 30 per cent of auto component production exported. The next leap must come from designing and developing products in India that can compete globally,” he said.However, Mehta flagged challenges such as high cost of capital, limited R&D spending and uncertainty around EV volumes, which makes component suppliers cautious. He added that greater policy support and demand visibility would help de-risk investments.Looking ahead, panelists said India has the potential to become a global hub for specific EV segments such as two-wheelers, three-wheelers and small cars, while emerging as a credible alternative manufacturing base to China. Investments in semiconductors, electronics, batteries and software were seen as critical to this transition.
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