Maruti Suzuki shares hit record high on e-Vitara rollout, ₹70,000 crore capex push

Shares of Maruti Suzuki India Ltd., the country’s largest passenger carmaker, gained nearly 3% to hit a record high of ₹14,825 after the automaker rolled out its first battery electric vehicle (EV), the e-Vitara, from its Hansalpur facility in Gujarat.

Maruti Suzuki said deliveries of the e-Vitara will begin within the next few months.

The company is targeting to become India’s largest electric carmaker in its very first year of launch and aims to export the model to nearly 100 countries, including Europe and Japan.

Export volumes are expected to range between 50,000 and 1 lakh units annually. However, the timeline for the e-Vitara's domestic launch is yet to be finalised.

Alongside the EV rollout, Maruti has also begun production of lithium-ion battery cells and electrodes for its hybrid vehicles.

A new battery plant, set up through a joint venture with Toshiba, Denso, and Suzuki, will enable local manufacturing of hybrid battery electrodes, with over 80% of battery value now being produced in India.

Capex plans

Suzuki has committed to investing around ₹70,000 crore in India over the next five to six years to strengthen its EV and hybrid ecosystem.

Speaking to CNBC-TV18, Chairman RC Bhargava said hybrids continue to outpace pure EVs in most markets, with China being the only EV-first exception.

He urged the government to revise the vehicle taxation structure, arguing that taxes should be based on fuel efficiency and emissions rather than technology alone.

"Reward cleaner technology over polluting petrol and diesel cars. Global markets tax EVs and hybrids equally; India should adopt a similar approach," Bhargava added.