Fisker To Launch ‘Fisker Ocean Electric SUV’ In India by 2023

The US-based electric car manufacturer Fisker Inc. at the Consumer Electronics Show 2020, held in Las Vegas, announced that it will be launching its brand new Fisker Ocean Electric SUV in India by 2023 or early 2024.

According to a media report, the company said that it will be launching the electric vehicle in the US market later next year, followed by other markets, including India, Europe and China. It also announced that it has plans to assemble, manufacture and export the electric SUV from India, thereby delivering a sustainable and affordable premium electric vehicles (EVs) to the Indian consumers.

The Fisker Inc chairman and CEO, Henrik Fisker, said that the company has designed Fisker Ocean EV to be more spacious. He also said the company plans to launch affordable versions that would be available at competitive prices in the Indian market.

Currently, the bookings for the Ocean Fisker has already begun in the US market at refundable $250 (INR 18K). The electric vehicle will cost $37.5K (INR 27.57 Lakh) in the US. After the tax benefit, the EV is expected to cost about 30K (INR 21.25 Lakh). However, in India, it is too early to predict the price of the electric vehicle.

In terms of travel range, on a full charge, the 80kWh battery-powered Fisker Ocean runs for over 300 Km. The electric SUV can also reach from zero to 100 Km/Hr in three seconds.

At present, there are only a handful of electric vehicles in the four-wheeler segment and the majority of them are either expensive or not sustainable. For instance, the cost of Hyundai Kona SUV is priced at INR 25.3 Lakh. On the other hand, the cost of Tata Tigor EV starts at INR 9.17 but lacks in terms of range, and on a full charge, it runs about 213 Km.

Recently, Chinese-owned British automobile brand MG Motor joined the EV race with its recent launch of MG ZS EV which is priced at around 25 Lakh. 

‘Not So Electrifying’ Year For Indian Electric Four-Wheeler Market 

The electric vehicle market is currently at an infancy stage. The growth is slow as there aren’t many players operating in the Indian EV space. However, government and industry stakeholders are pushing the EV adoption in the country through its ambitious second phase of Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric Vehicles (FAME II) scheme. Through this initiative, the Indian government is focusing on building an EV infrastructure across states and union territories.

In terms of the sales of electric vehicles, between April and November FY20, only 1,308 units of electric cars were sold. Notably, the electric vehicles in the four-wheelers category made a mere 0.07% rise of total passenger vehicle sales, which was at 18,82,047 units.

The state of Indian EV ecosystem needs to improve in the coming years to actually witness the real transformation. Currently, there exists a dearth in the industry in terms of affordable electric vehicles, lack of electric vehicle charging stations, regulation policy and government’s standardised incentive programmes.

Rudratej Singh, the president and CEO of BMW Group India, had earlier said that the infrastructure for EV is still ambiguous and uncertain, which would affect the price and acceptability of the electric vehicles among the Indian consumer.

In addition to this, Toyota had also stopped the manufacturing of electric and hybrid cars for the Indian market due to inadequate charging infrastructure.

The Future Looks Bright For Indian EV Market 

Earlier this year, Chinese automobile manufacturer Great Wall Motor made an announcement that it will be launching its electric car Ora R1 in India, this year. The electric car model is said to fall under the cheapest electric vehicle category in the world with a price range of $8.6K and $11K (INR 6.2 Lakh to INR 8 Lakh).

In December 2019, Porsche had plans to enter the Indian electric vehicle space with its latest EV Taycan, which is expected to be launched in July 2020. In November 2019, BMW announced the launch of its luxury electric cars under its Mini Cooper brand in India.

In terms of electric vehicle infrastructure, under the second phase of FAME II scheme, the Indian government recently approved the setting up of 2,636 EV charging stations around the country. These charging stations will spread across 62 cities in 24 states and union territories.