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Samsung in parleys to invest in Chinese electric car maker BYD

The South Korean company said that the move is aimed at strengthening its burgeoning semiconductor business for vehicles. Samsung said it will disclose the size of the investment after finalising the deal. The move is the latest partnership between tech companies and auto firms as vehicles are revamped with connectivity and technology.

Samsung, the world’s largest maker of memory chips and smartphones, said the deal will also boost its components businesses for electric cars and smartphones. The company said the talks with BYD will not affect supply deals of Samsung SDI, a lithium-ion battery supplier for electric vehicles.
  
BYD, the name stands for “Build Your Dreams”, is part of an emerging wave of Chinese companies that stand to profit from global demand for solar and wind power, electric cars and other clean and renewable energy. The firm started out as a battery developer, founded in 1995 by engineer Wang Chuanfu and 20 co-workers from a state-owned company. 

It grew to supply about half the global market for mobile phone batteries before expanding into electric vehicles with the 2002 purchase of a small producer of gasoline cars that became BYD Auto Ltd. (AP) AQS.

 Meanwhile, Heavy Industries and Public Enterprises Secretary Girish Shankar said that the challenges posed by high cost in popularising hybrid and electric vehicles in India can be overcome with a focus on manufacturing components and the vehicles in India.
 
“The biggest challenge is cost and all of us would have to work on it so that people can afford and easily adopt this new technology. To make it cheaper, we would have to work for Make-in-India and (that) is the solution for making electric vehicle affordable,” said Shankar.

 He was addressing a National Workshop & Exhibition of FAME India. Assuring the gathering the government’s commitment towards electric mobility under its FAME India scheme, he sought feedback from the industry, saying it would help them create market and a self-sustainable model.
 
“There are complexities and challenges, but still we can address them... In this, not just the government, but OEMs would have to come up with firm plans,” he said, adding that he expects forums including the Automotive Component Manufacturers Association of India (ACMA) to play a crucial role in it.

FAME India - Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric vehicles in India - is part of the National Electric Mobility Mission Plan. The scheme envisages Rs 795 crore support in the first two fiscals that started last year. 

According to Shankar, globally, hybrid models are being accepted and consumers are now able to afford it. In Europe, two lakh hybrid vehicles are self-sustainable without any government’s support.

JBM Auto, Poland’s Solaris form Joint Venture for electric buses

New Delhi: Auto component manufacturer JBM Auto on Friday announced a joint venture with Poland’s Solaris Bus & Coach SA for manufacturing electric and hybrid buses. 

Earlier this year in February at the Auto Expo, JBM Auto had unveiled a fully electric bus ‘Ecolife’ which was developed in partnership Solaris Bus & Coach. The Ecolife will be manufactured in India using Solaris’s technology.

 The vehicle will be powered by lithium batteries and run 150-200 km in 10-15 hrs of city bus operation. 

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