UPDATE 3-VW looks to cutbacks and electric cars to overcome scandal

India has recently joined the Electric Vehicles Initiative, a forum for global cooperation on the development and deployment of electric vehicles (EVs). With an interest in the Indian market, Letv—a multinational company based in Beijing—announced its electric car plan in December 2014, when its founder Jia Yueting said on its microblog account that the company will make electric vehicles. The project is called SEE (Super Electric Eco-system).

The first model looks like a racing car and is expected to roll off the production line in April 2016. According to Chinese media, the first model will be 3.465m long, 1.625m wide and 1.530m high. The wheelbase will be 2.345m long. The model will have two variations—the high and low-powered ones.

The vehicle will equip Letv’s intelligent internet-based LeUI system with a 9-inch touch screen, and can interact with Letv’s other smart terminals. For example, Letv’s smart phones can control the vehicle and the vehicle can have a seamless interaction with the other eco-products launched by the company. Recent media reports said Letv is working with Aston Martin and BAIC Motor Corporation to build its first electric vehicle. It will make its debut at Auto China 2016 from April 21-29 next year.

With organisations like Letv contributing across the globe, India’s target of deploying 5-7 million electric vehicles in the country by 2020 can be met. The country is also looking to emphasise on the importance of government incentives and coordination between industry and academia with a target of 4,00,000 passenger battery electric cars by 2020, thereby avoiding 120 million barrels of oil and 4 million tonnes of carbon dioxide.