Racing ahead on the E-vehicle track

Mahindra & Mahindra is one of India's leading automotive giants and among the few global manufacturers of electric cars commercially. The $16.9-billion Mumbai-headquartered conglomerate's Mahindra Racing was the only team to represent India in the Formula E world racing event for the second consecutive year in London in July 2016. Dr Pawan Goenka, executive director & group president (automotive & farm sector), shares his insights on the racing season, what it means for Indian electric vehicle (EV) ambitions and Mahindra's plans to become a leading EV player in the world.What is your assessment of this season of Formula E for Mahindra Racing Mahindra Racing had a good year being the “most improved team” on the grid with a near doubling of the points it won during the second season of Formula E. We competed at the front of the grid with podium wins, fastest laps, super poles, and double point finishes. Overall, we are satisfied with the direction and performance of our Formula E team.How are plans to take Formula E to India shaping up We are constantly exploring and supporting the process of bringing a race to India. We have been in touch with various stakeholders, including Indian government officers, and there is a strong appetite and interest in having a Formula E race in India.When we spoke at last year′s races, you had called on the Indian government to invest more on e-infrastructure. Have things improved since A lot is happening in this regard, though it will take time. The government of India has launched a scheme called FAME with the intent of accelerating the development, manufacturing and usage of electric vehicles in India.

[FAME or Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Hybrid and Electric vehicles was launched as part of the National Mission for Electric Mobility in April 2015. The scheme is aimed at providing demand incentives to electric and hybrid vehicles - from two-wheelers to buses.]Energy minister Piyush Goyal has said India can be a 100 per cent e-vehicles nation by 2030; What is your view To make it a reality, a lot has to be done by all stakeholders. We are seeing a constant reduction in the cost of electric vehicles over time. However, the infrastructure development needs to keep pace with the vehicle demand growth if it is to be sustained over time.We believe that EVs are the perfect solution for the Shared Economy with taxi aggregators like Uber and Ola being able to derive the running cost benefits of EVs at a much faster pace compared to private owners, given the greater number of kilometres these vehicles are driven. As a result, vehicles used for commercial purposes would adopt EV technologies at a faster pace.What are some of Mahindra′s global plans in the E space We are aiming to be the leading manufacturer of EVs in India and achieve scale. We are making steady progress toward this goal and will look to global markets, including the UK, Europe and China, to grow our share of the EV market.Is the solar sector′s involvement in powering these vehicles a promising sign Yes. Alternate energy can and will power alternate transportation solutions in the future. This process will accelerate as the 'next-generation' of solar cell technology increases energy output from solar photovoltaic (SPV) cells.What are some recent developments in the electric arena that excite you Electric vehicle technology is literally transforming in front of our eyes at a very rapid pace. The energy density of batteries is increasing on an annual basis, while the cost of raw material is decreasing, and powertrain efficiencies are approaching 90 per cent.Mahindra's participation in the Formula E championship has exposed us to these cutting edge EV technologies which will flow into our vehicles as part of our 'Race to Road' program. To answer your question, I am very excited and bullish on electric transportation.E credentials of Mahindra RacingMahindra Racing wrapped up the second FIA Formula E Championship with a seventh double points finish,

narrowly missing a podium.Nick Heidfeld finished in P4 but was deemed to have used too much energy in his final charge to the line, demoting him to P7 and promoting Bruno Senna from P10 to P6. Bruno Senna started the race out of place in P13 due to issues with getting heat into his tyres during qualifying. Through precise energy management and avoiding the incidents around him, Bruno succeeded in managing his race strategy and gained positions while defending from cars behind. He was finally classified in P6.Senna said: “Considering all the chaos that was going on around me, I am very happy that we came away with a strong final result. We had great pace in the car and learned a lot... We have a consistent car and increasingly strong race pace. I was disappointed not to start from further forward but I was behind a slower car during qualifying and couldn't get the tyres working before my 200kW hot lap.“Unfortunately, I suffered from a technical issue during the race which caused my car to go into false neutral on some downshifts, so I needlessly lost some positions but I am happy to come away with this strong result and more points for the team. We can be so proud of what we achieved this season.”Dilbagh Gill, Team Principal of Mahindra Racing Formula E Team, said: “We ticked every box we set out to this season. We have scored podiums, multiple double points finishes and fastest laps, and gained many championship positions compared to our season one result. We will take a moment to reflect on that achievement, but only a brief moment. We have every intention of continuing this upward trajectory. It feels odd to retire the M2Electro now but the preparation of the M3Electro is already in its final stages.”