Tata Motors today officially announced that it has delivered the first lot of the Nexon EVs to the Kerala Motor Vehicle Department (MVD) in Thiruvananthapuram. Out of the 65 units, the Indian carmaker handed over the 45 EVs in a ceremony, while the remaining 20 EVs will follow soon. Kerala’s Motor Vehicle Department (MVD) has leased a fleet of 65 Nexon EVs for 8 years as a part of ‘Safe Kerala’ programme. The Kerala Government will employ these Nexon EVs for effectively regulating the state’s vehicular traffic.
The EVs will be leased by the Kerala MVD from the Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL) through the Agency for New and Renewable Energy Research and Technology (ANERT). Through this initiative, the Kerala MDV will be able to ease approximately 650 tonnes of CO2 emissions and save on the costs of 2.2 lakh litres of diesel every year.
Speaking on the occasion, Shailesh Chandra, President – Passenger Vehicle Business Unit, Tata Motors, said, “The Kerala Govt. has been at the forefront of initiating several measures to enhance public safety. We are grateful to ANERT for driving this initiative on behalf of the Kerala Government and look forward to a fruitful partnership with them and MVD.
We are indeed proud that the Nexon EV is their preferred choice for the ‘Safe Kerala’ special project on road safety. The Nexon EV has emerged as India’s best-selling electric car, commanding a 63% market share in the personal EV segment and through these orders, we are hopeful that we will continue to lead the market.”
Tata Nexon EV comes equipped with a permanent-magnet AC motor, which is powered by a Lithium-Ion battery. Backed by Ziptron technology, the EV uses a 30.2 kWh battery offering a maximum range of over 312 km on a single charge. And, the new electric powertrain offers an output of 245 Nm of peak torque. It is claimed to clock triple-digit figure in 9.9 seconds. Moreover, the battery can be charged up to 80 per cent in an hour using a fast charger. However, the home charger will fully charge the EV in 8 hours.
The Tata Nexon EV was launched in the country earlier this year in January 2020. It comes equipped with features like keyless entry with button start, fully automatic climate control, connected car app, electric tailgate, leather-wrapped steering wheel along with rear parking camera with reverse park assist and more. The EV also gets a 7-inch dashtop touchscreen infotainment system from Harman with smartphone-based navigation, video playback, voice command, Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
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