Tata Motors, the Indian automaker, has announced that it will raise the prices of its commercial vehicles by up to 3% starting from October 1. This will be the third price hike by the company this year, as it aims to offset the residual impact of post-input costs, according to a report by Reuters.
The price increase will apply to the entire range of Tata Motors’ commercial vehicles. This move comes after the company previously raised prices by 1.2% in January and by 5% in March to comply with the new emission norms implemented by India through phase II of Bharat Stage 6.
The stricter emission norms, which include testing real-time driving emissions, have led to increased costs for automakers. As a result, Tata Motors and other companies in the industry are facing rising ownership costs, which is expected to slow down India’s commercial vehicle sales volume to low-to-mid-single digits, as stated in a report by ratings agency Fitch.
Furthermore, the implementation of the latest emission norms is projected to lead to a 5% increase in the prices of commercial vehicles from April 2023, according to the same Fitch report.
In addition to addressing the challenges posed by emission norms, Tata Motors is also focusing on expanding its presence in the electric vehicle market. The company is creating specialized dealerships in India dedicated to electric vehicles and has plans to allocate approximately $2 billion towards the development of battery-powered models by 2027.
Tata Motors reported a significant increase in sales of electric passenger vehicles in India last month, with a 65% year-on-year growth. To support its electric vehicle supply chain, the company is constructing a battery factory in Gujarat with a projected production capacity of 20-gigawatt hours.
Sources:
– Reuters
– Fitch report