The recent announcement on Tata Passenger Electric Mobility (TPEM) licensing JLR’s electrified modular architecture (EMA) platform will help it enter the premium EV space with global products.
Anand Kulkarni, Chief Product Officer and Head HV Programmes, TPEM, said at a virtual meeting on November 3 that the work between the two companies has been going on for a while even though the announcement was just made.
The idea for EMA-based JLR products was similar to what the ‘Avinya’ series is and led to the collaboration. Additionally, the background work that Tata Motors has done on the Generation 3 platform will be added to the global EMA platform. The company has also been focusing on the localisation aspect too with its third generation EV products.
Kulkarni said while the platform is a global product, it will be locally designed. Specific component-level localisation is also in the pipeline for the EMA platform. The biggest advantage with the sharing of platforms is the reduction in product development time by 25% along with lower cost of development.
He added that having a global platform would mean an ‘assured way to get into the premium EV segment’. The platform sharing will also help JLR in terms of reducing product cost and getting technologies from the Indian team.
The first product from the ‘Avinya’ series will be launched in end-2025 and Kulkarni said the platform would support multiple body styles. The collaboration will also help Tata Motors rev up its adoption of software over the air (SOTA), features over the Air (FOTA), safety (5-star EuroNCAP) and ultrafast charging technologies for high performance vehicles.
EV Roadmap
Tata Motors entered EVs in 2020 with the Nexon and has been continuously growing its footprint in the space with the brand averaging monthly sales of 6,500 units. The new version of the Nexon.EV takes the game further up with its technological and premium feel good features.
Kulkarni said while the Nexon.EV has breached the 400 km mark and the ‘Avinya’ series will have a range of over 550 km, beyond a point the range requirements of the consumers plateau out. “The feel good aspect and technological advancements become a factor of premiumness then,” he added. Keeping this in mind, the company will extend tech advancements from the ‘Avinya’ series to other products at a later stage.
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