“Our strategy is to make EVs in India for India. We don’t see much point in importing cars here. We want to continue our strategy to make cars in India, and our priority is not to import electric cars,” Koskas said. The EV policy promises subsidised customs duty of 15% for companies to import their green models here, but only when they commit to invest a minimum of $500 million for a factory, apart from substantial local value addition.
Citroen, that has followed group company Jeep into India, also said it sees India as a big opportunity for growth, though stiff competition from rivals and demanding customers are challenges ahead.
“If you succeed in India, you can succeed anywhere in the world. It is one of the most competitive markets in the world. Cars here are most competitive and expectations of customers is among the highest. It is very difficult… though we will do everything that we need to for succeeding here,” Koskas told TOI.
The Stellantis group is also hiring more engineers for research and tech development work at its centres in Chennai, Hyderabad and Bangalore, where it is developing technology for global markets. “While it is surely cheaper to hire here when compared to European and other developed economies, the availability of talent is also a crucial factor. Around 1,500 engineers are working in India and hiring will go on for another 1,100 over 12 months,” an official aware of the development said.
Koskas said India is “extremely important” for Citroen regarding business and sales. This is his third visit to the country over last 12-13 months. He has also visited dealerships of rival brands and done market research as the brand looks to launch new cars and understanding customer psyche better.
Citroen sells models such as C3 hatchback, C3 Aircross SUV, electric C3 mini and premium C5 offroader. The company will launch fifth product Basalt coupe later this year. Koskas said that to succeed in India, companies will need to constantly launch new cars and variants to excite the market.
“One key learning is that you need to bring in novelty, constantly. Indian customers are really moving quickly from one thing to another. If you don’t get new features and new cars, you will not be able to sustain… This is so different from other parts of the world, particularly Europe.”
Citroen is a part of Stellantis group, which was formed in 2021 by merger between Fiat Chrysler and Peugeot-maker PSA. Jeep is also a part of the group and has been selling SUVs in India, which it produces in a JV with Tata Motors.
The PSA group operates in India through a joint venture with the C K Birla group. The JV has seen the companies manufacture vehicle assembly and powertrains in Tamil Nadu. This has a capacity of 1 lakh units annually.