NEW DELHI: Two of Japan’s biggest auto companies - Suzuki Motor Corporation (Suzuki) and Toyota Motor Corporation (Toyota) - are expanding their partnership wherein Suzuki would supply battery electric vehicle (BEV) SUV model to Toyota. The new model is scheduled to be manufactured at Suzuki Motor Gujarat from the spring of 2025.
This development marks the first BEV in original equipment manufacturing (OEM) relationship between the two companies. The electric SUV will be launched worldwide, providing a BEV choice even in SUV market. Suzuki President Toshihiro Suzuki said, “Suzuki will supply our first BEV to Toyota globally. I am grateful that the collaboration between the companies has deepened this way. While continuing to be competitors, we will deepen our collaborations toward solving social issues, including realisation of a carbon-neutral society via a multi-pathway approach.”
Toyota President Koji Sato said, “By leveraging BEV unit and platform that we jointly developed, we will take a new step in our collaboration in the field of electric vehicles. This will allow us to deliver various choices that contribute to a carbon-neutral society to customers worldwide. We would like to learn from each other’s strengths, compete, and joint efforts based on a multi-pathway approach.”
Since Suzuki’s Chairman Osamu Suzuki and Toyota’s President Akio Toyoda started exploring business partnerships in 2016, both companies have engaged in a wide-ranging collaboration.