M&M SUVs will soon come with Volkswagen unified cells — and the street's excited

Mahindra and Mahindra (M&M) shares jumped 5% to hit a fresh 52-week high on Friday, February 16, after the $26 billion Indian auto giant announced that it would buy parts from Volkswagen for the cars made in India.

Volkswagen will supply some electric components and unified cells to start with and may expand the collaboration in the future. The unified cell concept, the German carmaker claims, can halve the cost of a battery that goes into electric vehicles.

The Mumbai-based Indian automaker also told the bourses that it would be the first company other than Volkswagen to use the unified cell concept.

Mahindra plans to launch five all-electric SUVs in India based on its electric platform INGLO, starting December 2024.

The supply deal that runs over several years will have a volume of about 50 GWh over a lifetime.

The electrification of the passenger vehicle segment is likely to gain significant momentum in the coming years in India, which has emerged as the largest automotive market in the world with more than 5 million vehicles per year, it said.