Pham Sanh Chau, CEO of VinFast Asia (right), received the Nanayam Vikatan Business Star Award from Murugandam, Chief Secretary to the Government of Tamil Nadu.

VinFast’s strategic progress in India has been further validated through recent accolades from the influential Vikatan Group media network. The company was distinguished with two significant awards: one recognising its substantial investment commitment, and the other honouring its VF 7 model as the premier urban electric vehicle for 2026. These commendations underscore the brand’s deepening integration into the Indian automotive sector, highlighting both its industrial strategy and its product relevance.

The title of Investor of the Year, conferred by Nanayam Vikatan business magazine, specifically acknowledges VinFast’s landmark commitment to establishing an electric vehicle manufacturing facility in Thoothukudi, Tamil Nadu. This project is noted not only for its scale and strategic clarity but also for its anticipated role in fostering a new industrial corridor, generating employment and bolstering the local supplier network. It aligns with national initiatives like Make in India and reflects confidence in the region’s manufacturing potential.

Concurrently, the VF 7 electric SUV was named Urban Electric Vehicle of the Year at the Motor Vikatan Awards 2026. This recognition from automotive experts underscores the model’s successful adaptation to India’s urban driving conditions, balancing design, performance, safety and comfort. It serves as a testament to VinFast’s product development focus and its localisation strategy aimed at meeting specific market demands.

As a respected media institution in South India with a legacy dating to 1926, the Vikatan Group’s awards carry considerable weight among businesses and consumers. These latest honours add to a growing list of VinFast’s achievements in the market, illustrating the convergence of its investment, manufacturing, and product efforts. Within a short timeframe, the company has employed a long-term strategy encompassing manufacturing, retail, charging infrastructure and after-sales services. Through this comprehensive approach and a focus on sustainable innovation, VinFast is steadily building its brand presence while contributing to India’s transition towards green mobility.

Pham Sanh Chau, CEO, VinFast Asia, said, “Being recognised in two important award categories demonstrates how VinFast is steadily building its position in India, not only through long term investment commitments but also through products developed to match local conditions and user needs. This recognition provides further momentum for us to accelerate implementation, expand the electric vehicle ecosystem, and maintain a long-term partnership with the Indian market.”

B Srinivasan, CEO, Vikatan Group, said, “VinFast India represents the new-age investor – bold in vision, swift in execution and deeply aligned with India’s growth story. By unravelling the true potential of the port city of Thoothukudi, VinFast India has helped create a conducive industrial ecosystem, played a positive role in employment generation and restored the city’s importance on India’s manufacturing map. Their investment is not just capital at work but confidence in India’s future.”

French automotive supplier OPmobility has been awarded a contract to supply a global Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) with 350V battery packs for future Hybrid Electric Vehicle (HEV) models in North America. The agreement stipulates the delivery of over 1 million battery packs over the duration of the contract.

This award marks the expansion of OPmobility’s electrification business into the passenger car segment. Previously, the company’s battery activities focused on heavy-duty mobility, including buses, trucks and trains.

The battery packs will utilise Nickel Manganese Cobalt (NMC) cell technology. OPmobility will be responsible for the engineering and delivery of the complete system, comprising: the battery case, battery cells and the Battery Management System (BMS).

To fulfil the order, the Group will extend its existing production facility in Anderson, United States.

The contract aligns with the trend toward hybridisation in the automotive industry. OPmobility currently supplies both pressurised fuel tanks and battery packs, allowing for the optimisation of energy storage across Hybrid Electric (HEV), Plug-in Hybrid Electric (PHEV) and Extended Range Electric Vehicles (EREV).

Felicie Burelle, Chief Executive Officer, OPmobility, said, "This major award reflects the trust placed in OPmobility by one of the world’s leading automotive manufacturers and key customer of the Group, and our unique and differentiating positioning to address the growing hybrid market with a competitive edge. With this contract, we strengthen the product offering of our powertrain activity with a new strategic growth lever. This is fully in line with our technological and geographical diversification strategy for all types of mobility.”

Swedish luxury car brand Volvo Car India and ChargeZone have inaugurated an ultra-fast electric vehicle (EV) charging station on the Mumbai-Nashik Highway. The facility is located at Food Hills near Igatpuri and features a 360kW power unit equipped with two dynamic load-balancing dispensers.

This marks the first installation between the partners as part of a 2025 Memorandum of Understanding aimed at developing a charging network across national corridors. The partners intend to add further stations throughout 2026.

The EV charging station utilises an intelligent configuration for power distribution. Dynamic load balancing allows the unit to adjust power output between the two dispensers based on vehicle requirements, which reduces waiting times.

The charger can be accessed through app-based navigation and payment systems. It features dedicated bays for Volvo electric vehicles.

Jyoti Malhotra, MD, Volvo Car India, said, "As a legacy brand, Volvo Cars is committed to driving the transition towards sustainable mobility, and this partnership with ChargeZone is a testament to that vision. Together, we are ensuring that our customers not only enjoy the luxury and performance of Volvo EVs but also have access to a dependable and hassle-free charging infrastructure. The new 360kW station on the Mumbai-Nashik highway is the first step in delivering a world-class charging experience across India."

Kartikey Hariyani, Founder & CEO, ChargeZone, added, “The launch of our first co-branded 360 kW ultra-fast charging station with Volvo Car India represents an important milestone in building a premium, future ready charging network for the country. The Mumbai Nashik hub showcases our focus on high speed, technology enabled infrastructure supported by intelligent features such as dynamic power loading that significantly improve the customer experience. As EV adoption accelerates, our priority is to ensure that long-distance travel becomes fast, predictable and seamless. We look forward to supporting India’s shift toward a cleaner and more sustainable mobility landscape.”

Maruti Suzuki India Limited has officially commenced deliveries of its first all-electric offering, the e VITARA, heralding a significant advancement in the nation's transition to sustainable transportation. The company has introduced a range of innovative ownership schemes designed to make electric vehicles more financially accessible. Chief among these is the Battery-as-a-Service (BaaS) model, a dual-loan product that removes the substantial upfront cost of the battery, with the vehicle priced from INR 1,099,000 plus a usage-based battery rental of INR 3.99 per kilometre. Complementing this is the ‘e Flex’ scheme, which allows customers to upgrade to the e VITARA while maintaining an EMI similar to their existing car. To further enhance customer confidence, Maruti Suzuki is offering assured buyback plans, guaranteeing up to 60 percent of the vehicle's value after three years or 45,000 kilometres and 50 percent after four years or 60,000 kilometres.

The e VITARA is engineered for a carefree ownership experience, backed by comprehensive warranty coverage. It is available with two battery pack options, 61kWh and 49kWh (with a claimed driving range of up to 543 kilometres, both of which come with an industry-standard warranty of eight years or up to 160,000 kilometres. The vehicle itself carries a standard three-year warranty, with the option to extend coverage up to eight years on a payable basis.

In terms of safety and technology, the e VITARA is equipped with advanced features as standard. It incorporates Level 2 Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS), which include functionalities like Adaptive Cruise Control, Lane Keep Assist and Automatic Emergency Braking. Passive safety is addressed with seven airbags, including a driver-side knee airbag, as standard equipment. The vehicle is built on the HEARTECT-e platform, which utilises over 60 percent high-tensile and ultra-high-tensile strength steel and features an advanced battery protection system. This robust construction has helped the e VITARA achieve a comprehensive five-star safety rating from Bharat NCAP. The driving experience is further enhanced by the next-generation Suzuki Connect telematics system, which offers over 60 connected features. Customers can book the e VITARA at any NEXA showroom or through the official website with an initial payment of INR 21,000.

Partho Banerjee, Senior Executive Officer, Marketing and Sales, Maruti Suzuki India Limited, said, “Maruti Suzuki’s EV strategy has been developed to ensure that the e VITARA becomes the primary EV choice for customers. The e VITARA offers a commendable driving range of over 543 km, supported by ‘e for me’ charging ecosystem that mirrors the reliability our customers have trusted for decades. With over 1,500 EV-ready service centres, specially trained NEXA EV relationship managers and dedicated charging managers, the e VITARA offers complete peace-of-mind. We are also introducing attractive flexible ownership plans with BaaS, alongside exclusive benefits for early adopters that make the e VITARA an irresistible proposition.”

Bengaluru-based energy technology company Exponent Energy has unveiled Exponent One, a comprehensive fintech and asset management initiative designed to overcome a significant obstacle in commercial electric vehicle adoption: the challenge of securing practical and accessible financing. This new venture will be led by Sandeep Divakaran, an experienced professional in financing and mobility who joins as Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer.

Exponent Energy has established a comprehensive energy ecosystem for commercial EVs by tackling critical issues such as rapid charging, dependable battery performance and consistent operational uptime. This work has yielded deep, real-world energy intelligence within the commercial mobility sector. Although EV technology has progressed considerably, widespread adoption remains limited by financing hurdles. Exponent One directly confronts this issue with an advanced underwriting and asset management platform developed specifically for commercial EVs, drawing on the aforementioned energy insights. The primary goal is to achieve financing parity with internal combustion engine vehicles by providing flexible financial products and mitigating risk through assurances and buyback programmes.

By collaborating with established financial institutions, the new venture seeks to enable large-scale EV financing for commercial operators. Its focus will be exclusively on commercial electric vehicles, encompassing three-wheelers, light commercial vehicles, four-wheelers, buses and trucks. Support will extend to both individual driver-owners and fleet operators, covering the entire ownership journey from initial acquisition through lifecycle management to eventual upgrades. Leveraging Exponent’s energy intelligence, the platform employs an AI-driven adaptive financing model that facilitates access to livelihoods. It also integrates embedded insurance to protect against health and asset-related difficulties, while guaranteed buybacks help cultivate a robust secondary market, offering crucial reassurance to vehicle owners and financial partners. Additional features like savings options, supplementary loans and upgrade paths are intended to support drivers in their professional growth.

To accelerate its early deployment and broaden its footprint in key commercial EV centers, Exponent One has secured USD 2 million in pre-seed investment from AdvantEdge Founders, aiming to deliver its adaptive financing solutions to a greater number of driver-owners.

Sandeep said, “Commercial Vehicle driver-owners operate real-world businesses with daily variable earnings and limited buffers, yet lending models are still run on personal credit rails, with fixed monthly assumptions (EMIs). This rigid approach, focuses on only output metrics of timely payments, and hence fails the driver and leads to the ecosystem viewing commercial EV financing as risky. At Exponent One, we believe in something fundamental: if the driver-owner fails, the system fails. Our vision is to enable sustainable micro-entrepreneurship in electric mobility by building financing that adapts to real world earnings and not monthly averages, manages asset risk, provides buffers and gives drivers the confidence to switch and grow with EVs. Our adaptive lending model focuses on input metrics – asset quality, charging patterns, energy consumption – giving us the ability to differentiate between bad luck and bad intent and help support driver-owners through their circle of life.”

Arun Vinayak, Founder and CEO, Exponent Energy, said, “Energy in EVs is an upfront capex problem, hence viable-financing products are needed to transform this higher capex to meaningful opex benefits to the driver-owners. Electric Commercial Vehicles are fundamentally energy assets. Our ability to influence battery life and manage them on a daily basis with real-time energy data gives us an edge in understanding these assets better and in knowing their residual value. EVs are digital, earnings are digital and the energy stack with Exponent is digital, and all these input metrics, layered with innovations in AI tech, enhances our ability to contextually underwrite and support the driver-owners through their circle of life. This is a first of its kind partnership, with energy and financing coming together to provide integrated adaptive finance and asset management solutions. We’re excited to have Sandeep lead this effort to build the financial layer needed to address the commercial EV financing gap. Together, Exponent Energy will power the assets and Exponent One will power the driver-owner.”

Kunal Khattar, Founder, AdvantEdge Founders, said, “Commercial EV scale in India isn't just a technology challenge; it's a data and capital challenge. Lenders must understand how these assets actually earn and age to unlock true scale. At AdvantEdge, we’re backing Exponent One because they’ve replaced ICE-era assumptions with real-time operational intelligence, aligning financing with daily earnings and long-term asset performance. By building a durable financial layer tailored to the EV ownership lifecycle, they are addressing the core risk mismatches that have held this industry back. We believe this is the missing piece that will finally move electric fleets from pilot to mass adoption.”