Thought leaders discuss how India-UK collaboration can usher in major breakthroughs in auto sector & More News Here – Upjobsnews

As India becomes central to the world’s development in the next two decades, it is making huge strides to rejig its automotive sector. From an ambitious shift to green mobility, aggressive R&D on battery technology and light-weight materials, work-horsing to drive down emissions, increasing focus on electrification, and an overarching effort to build on the automotive trade, India has been doing it all. Now, with trade talks blossoming between India and the UK, the transport sector has naturally come into the limelight, opening up many avenues for collaborations between companies from across the continent.

For decades, India and the UK have been working on their capacity for innovation, fostering a smart partnership spanning transport, smart power, renewables, energy efficiency, and electric mobility. Many Indian companies have been very active on the M&A front picking up UK based companies to establish a presence in the global market. The advent of electric vehicles has also seen new-age firms tap into the island’s rich knowledge reservoir. With Union Minister of Road Transport and Highways, India, Nitin Gadkari highlighting the country’s green fuel interests and its robust action to reduce the cost of electric automobiles to bring them at par with petrol-run vehicles in two years time, the transport sector’s transformation is just at the threshold. Thus, the tech prowess of UK and India’s expertise in execution and application is a win-win combination for the future.

In order to look into the strengths of both economies, the ways in which they complement each other and the areas where collaborations could usher breakthroughs in the auto sector that is still evolving and grappling with questions, ET Auto recently held a webinar on India-UK Partnership in the Era of New Mobility. The webinar brought together thought leaders and industry experts to discuss ways of propelling the transport sector to new orbits of growth through the India-UK partnership that is critical for a sustainable and prosperous future. Some of the dignitaries who graced the event are Anna Shotbolt, Deputy High Commissioner representing the United Kingdom in Karnataka, (Department for International Trade) and also the Deputy Trade Commissioner Investment for South Asia; Ruta Aisthorpe, Head Of International Events at Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), UK; Shreyas Shibulal, Founder & Director, Micelio Mobility; Mahesh Babu. CEO, India & COO, Switch Mobility; Dr. Umut Genc, Co-Founder and MD, Eatron Technologies; Hugo Spowers, Managing Director, River Simple; and Jonathan Watkins, CEO, Impression Technologies. The event was moderated by Sumant Banerji, Consulting Editor, ET Auto.

In her welcome address, Anna Shotbolt, Deputy High Commissioner representing the United Kingdom in Bangalore, (Department for International Trade) called the India-UK partnership a recipe for development and innovation. She said
, “With India aspiring to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2070, the UK is very keen to collaborate with the country. In Karnataka, we are already working with the government to build an electric vehicle partnership and an online portal hub. We are hoping that this, among other things, will support both nations in achieving net zero emissions and with India and UK working together on the EV front, we are hoping that we will meet the targets really soon.” Shotbolt is also the Deputy Trade Commissioner Investment for South Asia.

The keynote address of the event was delivered by Ruta Aisthorpe, Head Of International Events at Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), UK. Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) is one of the largest and most influential trade associations in the UK and its unrivalled automotive data makes it the voice of the UK motor industry, supporting and promoting its members’ interests, at home and abroad, to government, stakeholders and the media. As someone who has been with SMMT for close to 11 years, Aisthorpe gave an overview of the EV market in the UK and its industry outlook. She says, “
Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) is the largest trade body in the UK in the automotive sector, with over 860 members and we are glad to support this event. The policy landscape of the UK in the automotive sector is huge with a lot of targets to be achieved. Registrations show that electric battery vehicles have a market share of 18% as of February and there has been almost a 200% jump in this figure compared to last year. There are various factors that have accelerated this shift and the new trade agreement will be a great opportunity for the UK and India to strengthen not just trade but also collaboration and partnership to build a modern, innovative, and sustainable automotive sector in both the countries. There is a lot of scope on the innovation and manufacturing of batteries in the UK. There has also been a whopping 3000% growth in public charge point infrastructure in the UK, for which the government, local authorities and charging infrastructure department deserve credit. The UK welcomes collaboration from India in the EV sector and the trade association is here to support it.” She further focussed on trends in vehicles and technology in the UK, the automotive commitments of the UK in the EV market and spoke about how OEMs are committing to the EV roll-out.

This was followed by a panel discussion where the strengths of both economies were discussed by industry leaders in the automotive sector, especially those focused on the EV space. The panel focussed on the high points that the collaboration between the UK and India could lead to, now that the sector is evolving at a breakneck pace and needs innovation to steer its wheels forward.

The key discussion points of the panel discussion included areas of collaboration such as lightweight materials, battery technology, engineering services, design services, skilling in the short term, mid-term and long term. It also discussed the impact that this disruption in the automotive supply chain could have on the EV supply chain in India and the various reasons behind this disruption. The session also highlighted the innovations that the UK is doing in delivering its Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV), and how the UK can be a strategic partner to India to drive the supply chain in next generation Zero Emission Vehicles. Moderated by Sumant Banerji, Consulting Editor, ET Auto, the panel featured Shreyas Shibulal, Founder & Director, Micelio Mobility; Mahesh Babu. CEO, India & COO, Switch Mobility; Dr. Umut Genc, Co-Founder and MD, Eatron Technologies; Hugo Spowers, Managing Director, River Simple; and Jonathan Watkins, CEO, Impression Technologies.

Mr. Hugo Spowers, Managing Director, River Simple, a UK-based car manufacturer of hydrogen-powered fuel cell electric vehicles, says,
“India is a fantastic partner to develop renewable technology and we are very focussed on having new manufacturing strategies where there are lower minimum efficient scales and this leads towards developing cars that are not just niche-specific but specific to cultures and environments and more localized manufacture. River Simple aims to establish joint ventures in other countries where we have both manufacturing facilities and R&D centres that work closely with us to create a greater variety of job opportunities. In India, the fuel cell sector is a particularly interesting field to tap into, considering it is in the early stages of development and it is rather easy to establish a global position when it is in a nascent stage.”

The session highlighted the need to tap into new technologies considering the world is fairly unaware of what would be the definite technology in the EV space in the near future. Thus, it is crucial for countries to come together to share their know-how and harness the power of EVs. India and the UK are well positioned to take this ahead. India’s engineering strength combined with UK’s tech prowess has already led to wonders, which has been quite evident in the mergers and acquisitions and cross-border investments between the two countries.

Dr. Umut Genc, Co-Founder and MD, Eatron Technologies pointed out how India can be a potential electronics manufacturing base for the global EV market. He says, “
The software development expertise of India combined with the product development expertise of the UK can create a formidable force globally to create future technologies in the automotive space. India has a lot of advantage in terms of cost and frugal manufacturing and the country can fare well if it moves towards electronics manufacturing and the country can be a feasible alternative to other Asian countries in this aspect. This can help accelerate the country’s manufacturing systems not just for local markets but also for export markets. Electronics are currently needed for e-drive, e-motor, battery, charge stations etc. and expanding the expertise can help in boosting the EV economy globally and also secure the supply chain in the coming years.”

Jonathan Watkins, CEO, Impression Technologies, UK highlighted the specific areas where the India-UK collaboration could lead to yielding results.
He says, “India and the UK have a strong opportunity for collaboration on three specific areas. First of all, on advanced materials. One key element of our technology is the development of lightweight materials or new-generation materials potentially involving recycling will be a very key area that this collaboration can lead to. Second is the simulation part. We are essentially a part software company where we often face the lack of engineers for doing simulation. We are looking forward to partnering with Indian companies to build an island of simulation talent to work together and support our core resources. The third area of collaboration is, of course, on electric vehicle development, particularly battery packs where there are a lot of Indian companies which have UK affiliates, and with this we can transplant our technology into new electric platforms in India.”

Shreyas Shibulal, Founder & Director, Micelio Mobility and Mahesh Babu, CEO, India & COO, Switch Mobility were the Indian panellists who participated in the discussion. Mahesh Babu highlighted the importance of building technologies that can solve the problems of the world at large.
“Rather than looking at just the Indian market or the UK market, this collaboration should solve the problems of the global economy. With the free trade agreement, India naturally emerges as a profitable partner as we have a large low-cost centre production house, manpower and knowledge further boosted by the demand for it in the UK. Similarly, India needs a lot of knowledge based on critical technologies and this collaboration can make the journey very productive,” Babu says. Further, he highlighted how India has a very clear plan in the automobile and energy sector. He adds,
“It started off in 2015 when the Paris Agreement happened and India pledged to contribute to reducing global climate change. After this event, the PM immediately set up the International Solar Alliance (ISA). Later in 2017, Niti Aayog released its report on new age mobility and transformative mobility solutions in India, and then PLI schemes arrived. Now, in 2021, PM Modi announced that by 2070 India will attain Net Zero Emissions. The country surely has a definitive policy path which will benefit the UK-India collaboration where both countries can leverage each other’s strength to serve the globe.”

On the aspect of collaboration, Shreyas Shibulal highlighted how this also extends to the collaboration among start-ups. He notes,
“There is definitely an interest in Indian start-ups in collaborating with off-shore companies to develop new technologies, especially in the context of battery technologies. ”

Over and above, the webinar on India-UK Partnership in the Era of New Mobility discussed in detail how the India-UK partnership can prepare the automotive industry for the golden period of the sector, which is renewable and sustainable at large. The event was a clarion call for the two economies to come together to spread their foothold in the global market.

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