DENSO enters Indian EV joint venture with Suzuki and Toshiba

Lithium-ion battery pack production to help meet reduced emissions targets while achieving rapid growth in consumer demand for road transport in India

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DENSO Corporation has reached a basic agreement to establish a joint venture company with SUZUKI MOTOR Corporation and TOSHIBA Corporation for production of automotive lithium-ion battery packs in India.

Increased production and affordability of lithium-ion battery technology are the cornerstones of the Indian government’s National Electric Mobility Mission 2020 agenda. Rapidly increasing demand for passenger cars in India is projected to see traffic volumes rise from 11 cars per 1000 persons in 2010 to approximately 19 cars per 1000 persons in 2020, while the government has committed to cut CO2 emissions to an average 29 g/km in the same period.

Electric vehicles are expected to play a pivotal role in achieving these commitments. India represents an automotive market where compact cars are the mainstream models, making the introduction of cost-effective sustainable technology suitable for such affordable cars a matter of national priority.

The joint venture company will be established within 2017 and shall move to the manufacturing phase at the earliest possible timing. The initial objective will be to establish a stable supply of lithium-ion battery packs in India to create increased opportunities to develop and own sustainable cars in the country and will contribute to the “Make in India” initiative by the Indian Government.

The initial capital expenditure will be 20 billion Japanese yen. The joint venture company will be capitalized at 2 billion Japanese yen, with the planned participation ratio of SUZUKI 50%, TOSHIBA 40% and DENSO 10% respectively.

Establishment of the joint venture company will be further examined in details by the three companies, and subject to approval by respective authorities in accordance with applicable competition laws.

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Further details of DENSO’s activities are available online at https://www.denso.com/global/en/