Sona Comstar puts JV with China’s Jinnaite Machinery in abeyance, records highest-ever revenue in Q2

Auto components major Sona Comstar said on Monday that following discussions with China’s Jinnaite Machinery, the two parties have mutually decided to put the joint venture—which was announced in July this year—in abeyance. However, the parties have expressed a willingness to collaborate on select foundry products and remain open to future collaboration.

The JV term sheet, as a consequence, stands rescinded. While Sona Comstar did not disclose the reason for putting the joint venture on hold, the decision comes at a time when China has introduced new restrictions on the export of rare-earth processing equipment. The restrictions cover items such as centrifugal extraction machines and intelligent impurity-removal equipment. Both machines are critical for processing ionic rare-earth ores.

According to Vivek Vikram Singh, MD and Group CEO, Sona Comstar, the component-maker shifted to alternative motor designs and is now manufacturing light rare-earth magnet motors for electric two-wheelers. “We have developed a rare-earth-free ferrite-assisted synchronous reluctance motor for three-wheelers and light commercial vehicles,” he said in a statement.

Singh’s comments came on the sidelines of Sona Comstar’s second-quarter results, where the company recorded a quarterly revenue of ₹1,144 crore—its highest-ever in a quarter—corresponding to a 24% year-over-year growth. Its PAT for the quarter grew 20% from the corresponding quarter last year to ₹173 crore. EV programs contribute 70% of Sona Comstar’s net order book of ₹23,600 crore as of September 30.

“It was a successful quarter for business development as we won several significant new orders. We have been nominated for two additional programs—one in Asia and the other in Europe—to supply our motors and motor controllers for predictive active suspension systems. These nominations are important as they indicate that our innovative suspension system is gaining wider acceptance just months after its first commercial launch,” Singh added.

Recovery in the business comes after the battery-electric vehicle segment, which accounted for 32% of revenue, weighed on its financial performance in the first quarter. CEO Singh had remarked then that the convergence of multiple factors had culminated in a challenging quarter for Sona Comstar, but the factors were transient, which had started to resolve.

The Gurugram-based company has also received its first order from its new driveline plant in Mexico to supply differential assemblies to an OEM in the U.S.—a recreational off-highway vehicle OEM—amid ongoing trade uncertainties. This programme has added ₹2.6 billion to its order book, and production is likely to begin from the second quarter of FY28.

Sona Comstar shares closed 1.02% higher on Monday, ahead of the results, at ₹483.65 apiece.