NEW DELHI: Despite COVID-19 pandemic creating havoc in the Indian automotive industry, German carmaker Volkswagen sees no changes or delays in their upcoming India 2.0 project.
“We are extremely focused on our India 2.0 project and are relentlessly working towards achieving our project timelines. As of now, we don’t foresee any delays and are very much on-track,” Steffen Knapp, Director, Volkswagen Passenger Cars India told this daily.
Knapp informed that Volkswagen Taigun (built on the MQB A0 IN platform) will be launched in 2021 and in the near future their product strategy for India is entrenched on SUVs such as the recently launched the Volkswagen T-Roc & Tiguan Allspace.
To change its fortune in the Indian market and capture a significant market share, the Volkswagen Group announced its ambitious 2.0 project in 2018 where it committed an investment of 1 billion euro.
On the future of diesel cars in India, Knapp said demand for it will reduce in the majority of the segment. “The fluctuation of fuel prices between petrol-diesel and the advent of BS6 norms have resulted in
increased demand for petrol-powered cars in the small to mid-segment cars. While we may see consumer interest in diesel cars, the demand for it will reduce in the majority of the segment,” Knapp said.
Knapp also said that electric vehicle is the need of the hour and Volkswagen, is at the verge of democratising the technology with its all-new MEB platform. “We are now evaluating the market situation and infrastructural development across India” he added.