Tata Motors launches $10,000 electric car in India

Tata Motors launched India’s lowest priced electric car at a little over $10,000 on Wednesday as the country’s only electric vehicle (EV) maker looks to draw in more buyers. Tata leads India’s EV market, helped by government subsidies and high tariffs on imports.Its move comes as domestic rival Mahindra & Mahindra is in talks with investors to raise up to $500 million for its EV unit and plans to launch its first electric sport-utility vehicle (SUV) in January. Tata’s Tiago EV, an electric version of its popular Tiago hatchback, will have a sticker price starting from 849,000 rupees ($10,370). The bulk of cars sold in India, the world’s fourth-largest car market, are priced below $15,000.That is much cheaper than India’s next most affordable EV – the electric version of Tata’s Tigor compact sedan which starts at around $14,940. China, however, has some EV models that start as low as 32,800 yuan ($4,525). The Tiago EV’s operating cost is expected to be about a seventh of the gasoline version, making it a “compelling proposition”, said Shailesh Chandra, managing director of Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles and its EV subsidiary.