Jindal Stainless to Produce Stainless Steel E-Rickshaws

Among many other things, India is a land of auto rickshaws (or “tuk-tuks,” as they are called in Thailand).
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These three-wheeler “traffic dodgers” are a common sight on Indian roads. They also form part of India’s exports to other nations in Southeast Asia and Africa.
Just a couple of days ago, the tuk-tuk debuted in Omaha, Nebraska, too.
Perhaps keeping in mind its ever-increasing popularity around the globe, Indian steel company Jindal Stainless has announced it would soon be manufacturing stainless steel e-rickshaws, the Business Standard reported.
The steel major showed off a prototype at the 9th Electric Vehicles Expo, which drew enthusiastic crowds. About 600,000 e-rickshaws are being sold every year in India, and Jindal Stainless feels it could easily corner 25% of that multimillion-dollar market with its new product. Furthermore, the market is estimated to grow at 16% CAGR over the next five years, the Business Standard reported.
Jindal officials said there was demand from India’s first- and second-tier cities. One of them was Lucknow, the capital of India’s largest province, Uttar Pradesh. They expect an annual demand of 13,000 tons of steel from the sector by 2021.
Jindal claims to have manufactured India’s first-ever stainless steel e-rickshaw, claiming it was far superior in chassis performance as compared to carbon steel e-rickshaws.
The lifespan of the carbon steel vehicles is low as compared to the stainless steel counterpart. Safety, too, is better in the latter because of its high strength-to-weight ratio, improved crash resistance and corrosion prevention. Stainless steel components lead to 14-15% reduction in overall body weight, according to the Business Standard, resulting in higher battery efficiency. Not only that, a stainless steel “auto” will fetch a higher value when scrapped, as compared to the carbon steel counterpart.
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Jindal has already received advance orders of 100 stainless steel e-rickshaws. More are expected since India’s electric vehicle market is expected to grow exponentially in the coming decade.