A senior official stated that Hindustan Motors Ltd, owned by C K Birla, and its European partner completed due diligence in relation to the proposed electric two-wheeler project.
The electric vehicles will be launched by the joint venture at the Uttarpara plant of Hindustan Motors in West Bengal in the next financial year.
“The due diligence between HM, and the European company has now been completed. The company will soon reveal the name of the foreign partner,” a representative of the Indian company said.
Initial investments for the EV project are estimated at Rs 600 crore. After that, the companies will explore the possibility to enter the electric four-wheeler market.
He stated that a pilot run is possible after JV has been formed. This takes around six months. The official said that the structure of the JV was being finalized, including the share of equity that each partner will own.
He stated that the electric two-wheeler could be built on 98 acres at the Uttarpara facility, after modernization. The Uttarpara plant has been defunct for many years.
An earlier official stated that the company had paid most of its liabilities and reduced its accumulated losses.
The “lack of demand” for its iconic Ambassador cars led to HM closing the plant in 2014. The West Bengal government had granted permission to the company the sale of 314 acres of land at this plant for other uses.