Kathmandu, February 13
Following the gradual development in the country's energy sector, initiatives taken by the government and banks and financial institutions to promote green energy along with the introduction of innovative and high-tech electric vehicles (EVs) over the past couple of years, the number of auto buyers considering EV as their next choice has started to increase in the domestic market, stakeholders say.
According to Shawant Jung Sijapati, general manager of Sipradi Trading Pvt Ltd, the sole distributor of Tata Motors Ltd, the number of Nepalis opting for electric vehicles has gradually increased over the past few years although EV products were introduced in the domestic market over a decade ago.
"The steps taken by banks and financial institutions (BFIs) and the government to support green energy have supported the EV market," he said, adding that people can own an electric vehicle by paying around 20 per cent down payment.
Organising a media drive to the first-of-its-kind EV learning centre at the Sipradi Training Centre in Naikap and EV Service Centre and EV Battery Diagnostics and Restoration Facility in Bagdole, Sijapati shared that the motive of the event is to showcase the process andinnovation developed by Tata Motors Ltd. According to him, the company's EV market share has increased to 80 per cent.
Talking to media personnel, Kumar Bhandari, chief of customer care service for Tata Motors, said that the training centre was established on December 21, 2012, and has since trained over 40,000 people. "Likewise, the first-of-its-kind EV training centre was also established about seven months ago after the number of customers choosing EVs increased, indicating that the people are satisfied with the products and have adapted to it as well," he said.
Stating that Ziptron tech developed by the company has been installed in its range of Nexon EV units, Bhandari informed that the battery pack houses three modules consisting of over 600 lithium cells allowing the car to run 312 km at full charge. The range given by the battery also depends on the driver.
He also shared that there is no issue with difficulty in finding the parts of the EVs.
"With our capacity to restore damaged batteries, battery housings, and other electronic components, customers will be provided with their required parts within 48 to 72 hours. The company also provides a warranty of up to eight years or 160,000 km on its battery pack which has a life cycle period of about 15 years. Our new battery diagnostic and restoration facility has further strengthened the company's capacity to restore damaged or unbalanced cells, removing the hassle of replacing the whole battery pack and effectively reducing the customer's costs," he added.
A version of this article appears in the print on February 14, 2023, of The Himalayan Times.
