Shares of Ashok Leyland Ltd. gained the most in six months after U.S.-based Dana Inc. made a minority investment in the truckmaker's electric commercial vehicle arm.
Dana has picked up a 1% stake in U.K.-based Switch Mobility for about $18 million (Rs 13 crore), according to an exchange filing. It will be a preferred supplier of electric drivetrain components for the Switch Mobility's e-bus and EV commercial vehicle offering, including e-axles, gearboxes, motors, inverters, software and controls, and electronics cooling.
Shares of Ashok Leyland jumped as much as 9.82%, the steepest since Feb. 1, but pared some of the gains to trade 7.2% higher at 12:10 p.m. on Friday. Trading volume was more than 10 times the 20-day average for this time of day.
“At Switch Mobility, we have ambitious plans to lead zero carbon mobility globally through positioning innovative products and solutions with best in class TCO (total cost of ownership),” Dheeraj Hinduja, chairman of Ashok Leyland and Switch Mobility, was quoted as saying in the filing. “The partnership with Dana will accelerate the process, building on our strong relationship of many years.”
Earlier this week, news agency PTI had reported that Ashok Leland aims to invest up to $200 million for electric vehicles through Switch Mobility in the next few years.
Switch Mobility will be launching its first electric light commercial vehicle (e-LCV) in India by the end of December, PTI reported citing Ashok Leyland's conference call with the media. It has secured 2,000 orders. These vehicles will be manufactured in India and sold under the Switch brand, it said.
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