Tata Motors wins ₹766 cr arbitral award in Singur case

Tata Motors on Monday said it has won an arbitral award of ₹765.78 crore along with 11% interest in compensation from West Bengal Industrial Development Corporation Limited (WBIDC) on account of the loss of capital investments at its now defunct manufacturing plant in Singur.

"This is to inform that the aforesaid pending Arbitral proceedings before a three member Arbitral Tribunal has now been finally disposed of by a unanimous Award dated October 30, 2023 in favour of TML whereby the claimant (TML) has been held to be entitled to recover from the respondent (WBIDC) a sum of Rs.765.78 crore with interest thereon @11% p.a. from September 1, 2016, till actual recovery thereof," the carmaker says in a regulatory filing.

Tata Motors has also been held to be entitled to recover from the respondent (WBIDC) a sum of ₹1 crore towards the cost of the proceedings.

The automaker was allotted 1,000 acres of land in West Bengal to manufacture Nano, its cheapest offering. However, the project was shelved after the company faced stiff opposition from the then Trinamool Congress chief Mamata Banerjee, the current CM of West Bengal. In 2010, Tata Motors set up a plant in Gujarat's Sanand to exclusively produce the Nano.

Tata Motors, India’s largest commercial vehicle manufacturer, last month delivered the country’s Hydrogen Fuel Cell powered (FCEV) buses to state-run oil marketer Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL). On October 23, the company unveiled two new-age R&D facilities to meet its mission of offering sustainable mobility solutions. The unveiling constitutes an engine test cell for the development of Hydrogen Internal Combustion Engine and the necessary infrastructure for storage and dispensing of Hydrogen fuel for the Fuel Cell and H2ICE vehicles.

"Tata Motors has been leading the global megatrend of sustainable, connected and safer mobility in India. We believe Hydrogen to be the fuel of the future, especially for commercial vehicles. With the opening of this dedicated R&D facility to develop and indigenise Hydrogen propulsion technology, we are entering a new era of technological innovations and advancements in green mobility. The resulting benefits from an altogether new class of powertrains and engines will take our customers and our nation future forward," said Girish Wagh, executive director, Tata Motors.

"This is a significant moment for us as we create Hydrogen based internal combustion engine development facility and the associated infrastructure for fuel storage and dispensing at our Engineering Research Centre. This development is a testimony to Tata Motors' continued commitment and leadership towards net zero and long-term vision for offering differentiated powertrain solutions across segments under one roof. We have been investing in the Hydrogen technology for the last many years and continue to be committed for harnessing its maximum potential through research and product development," said Rajendra Petkar, president and CTO, Tata Motors.