MG Group sets up EV Park in Telangana

The facility, which will support start-ups in the electric vehicle (EV) space, was inaugurated by KT Rama Rao Garu, Minister for Municipal Administration and Urban Development, Industries and Commerce and Information Technology, Government of Telangana

KT Rama Rao Garu, Minister for Municipal Administration and Urban Development, Industries and Commerce and Information Technology, Government of Telangana, and Anil Kamat, MD, MG Group, (centre right and left respectively) at the inauguration of the MG EV Park at Zaheerabad in Telangana

MG Group with its expertise in bus and coach building recently announced the setting up of an EV Park through the synergies of the core competencies of all its three business entities as a consolidated group. This will function as an incubating hub for several start-up enterprises in the electric vehicle (EV) two-wheelers and three-wheelers space in the state of Telangana. MG Group will provide its expertise in design, engineering, development, components supply and assembly for the entities who have the vision but lack the manufacturing expertise or the infrastructure to achieve their goals. The park was inaugurated by KT Rama Rao Garu, Minister for Municipal Administration and Urban Development, Industries and Commerce and Information Technology, Government of Telangana.

“We have embarked on this incubating initiative by facilitating trailblazing enterprises like Padmaja Greentech to enable them to market their EV two-wheelers and Zero 21 Renewable Energy Solutions to market their EV three-wheelers,” the company stated. MG Group is currently interacting with a few other EV start-ups in and around Hyderabad to help launch their businesses and be a catalyst in the development drive of the Telangana government in the areas of sustainable development of fossil-free transport solutions for Telangana and also for other states of India. In the process it will also contribute to generation of employment coupled with the economic development of Telangana.

Anil Kamat with Dr. Rani Srinivas, Founder, Zero 21 Renewable Energy Solutions

MG Automotives (P) Ltd. is the flagship founding company of MG Group, headquartered in Mumbai. MG Group’s foray into bus building and special applications started with a mother plant set up in Zaheerabad, Telangana in 1996 by Founder and Chairman Mohan Kamat. The company, over the years, has consolidated its prowess in bus and coach building, encompassing multiple backward integrated activities and thus achieving the status of a one-stop total solutions provider for bus and coach requirements as well as special applications. MG Group is recognised today as the most competent and sought after brand for bus and coach requirements as well as special applications across the country, catering to the needs of various OEMs, STUs and fleet owners.

Subsequently, in 2014, the company further invested and set up MG Composites LLP for FRP and advanced composites components for the automotive, non-automotive and defence sectors for both domestic and export markets. This was followed by MG Grey Engine LLP in 2016 for manufacturing bus electrical and electronic components, both adjoining the MG Automotives bus-building facility in Zaheerabad. The three manufacturing units together generated direct employment for more than 1,500 people of which most of them are from Zaheerabad and its surrounding areas. “We have also contributed to women empowerment through the engagement of women employees from Zaheerabad and up- skilling them. They represent 90% of the workforce in MG Grey Engine LLP,” said Anil Kamat, Managing Director, MG Group.

National Contribution

MG Group has always strived and contributed towards the development and economic growth of the populace of the Telangana state by creating several thousand indirect job opportunities through its contractors and supplier base nurtured in the region over close to around three decades of its presence in Zaheerabad. The MG EV Park, through MG Composites LLP, has made very good inroads into the defence sector, which is a key focus area in addition to EVs. “We are manufacturing containers for transportation of explosives and are negotiating underwater mines and naval ship antennas and radomes for the defence sector for both domestic and export requirements. The MG EV Park is focused on key sectors of the state and of national importance such as electric vehicles, ambulances and mobile medical units and defence,” said Kamat.

Anil with the dedicated MG Group workforce

Elaborating, Kamat stated: “The initiative of the Telangana government to create EV and ESS clusters motivated us to convert our Zaheerabad facility into the MG EV Park. We pooled in our competence in design, development and manufacturing of vehicle chassis, body in white (BIW) and cargo body solutions for the EV industry apart from offering our complete vehicle assembly expertise to start-up companies which require access to such an ecosystem as the MG EV Park. What we have offered to our EV start-up enterprises is reduced timelines for commercial product launch by delivering the shortest possible lead time from concept to delivery and mass manufacturing to support market entry and expansion initiatives.”