Tata Motors up the ante in EV race with new CURVV concept with 500-km range

Tata Motors has unveiled the CURVV concept — the next generation of EV platform which will manifest in a mid-size SUV — which borrows the silhouette of a coupe — slated to launch within the next two years, and Tata is already expediting its development. The concept would be Tata’s first vehicle to be launched as an EV first, and would then be followed by the existing internal-combustion engine (ICE)-powered counterpart; a hybrid model will not be offered. Notwithstanding, the company has refrained from giving any timeline on when the ICE-powered vehicle derived from the CURVV concept will be launched, ostensibly to stabilise the electric vehicle demand when launched. Tata also did not comment on a price-range, but given its positioning, it is understood that it will be priced between mid-size and large-size SUVs.

“With the concept CURVV, we now enter the Generation 2 EV architecture which will further enhance the adoption of EVs in India by overcoming the current barriers. With this new architecture, we will strengthen the key pillars of range, performance and technology, while retaining safety and reliability as hygiene offerings,” says Shailesh Chandra, managing director, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles, and Tata Passenger Electric Mobility. It will also position production-ready vehicles from the CURVV concept as a brand-new segment — which will not cannibalise any of its existing portfolio — and hopes to elicit demand from both mid-size and large-size SUV buyers. “It will be a suitable fit for the fast-paced life of urban dwellers who appreciate and expect shorter charge time, interactive and intuitive interfaces, quicker response, and feature comfort,” the company says.

The production-ready electric vehicle from the CURVV concept is expected to have a range of 400-500 kilometres. When asked about whether a 500-km range would become standard in EVs and its subsequent irrelevance, Chandra remarks that the company strives to find a right balance between price, performance, and range, and it believes that the 400–500-kilometre range would be “the right balance for this product”. Products on Tata’s Generation 2 EV architecture is expected to deliver a higher range than the Generation 1 products powered by its proprietary Ziptron technology — while retaining the credibility and reliability standards set by it. It will also provide faster, more efficient charging both in AC and DC modes. The cars will be capable of vehicle-to-load (V2L) and vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) charging capabilities. It will be more advanced and flexible — capable of offering multi-powertrain options. The architecture is also capable of an all-wheel drive motor, and Tata will mull offering that option if there is a palpable demand.

Chandra also denies providing any projections on the volumes that the carmaker expects from this conceptual architecture, and which plant will the company opt for production. “We will see the market response and then forecast production numbers,” he adds. Moreover, the company is evaluating and identifying which cars of its fleet would be a part of its international portfolio, and according to Chandra, is also “carefully selecting its international markets”. The company is also seeing homogeneous demands across demographics and geographies — whether in the metropolitan cities or in the mofussil.

Tata Motors has emerged as an early leader in India’s nascent but burgeoning segment of electric passenger vehicles. Its annual EV sales touched 19,106 units, a growth of 353% over FY21. “Our ongoing business turnaround is history in the making. From record sales to upping our market share game, the last fiscal has been nothing but magical for us. We also continued to super charge our growth in the EV space with our highest ever annual EV sales going up by 353% vs FY21,” Chandra adds. The response to its existing EV portfolio has evidently buoyed the company to hit the throttle. According to Chandra, the company is on track to offer 10 EVs by 2025, and its next step would be to offer a pure EV-based architecture—which will not have ICE-powered counterparts.