News from INDIA | Automotive Trade Mission to Chennai, Pune & New Delhi

The automotive industry is in crisis worldwide, yet business is booming in India. India is now the world’s third-largest automobile manufacturer, behind China and the USA. The country exports a wide range of vehicles, particularly small cars, to Africa, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia. Conversely, India is now also the world’s fifth-largest automotive sales market.

Major Styrian names such as AVL and KS Engineering have already recognized this potential and conquered the Indian market. Now more and more local companies want to follow their lead. This was the perfect occasion for our trade mission from March 8-15, 2025, in which, alongside AVL, local companies such as Dewetron, NextSense, TCM, and Terma also took part.

“We are driving forward the diversification of export markets necessitated by geopolitical shifts, particularly through our focus program on India. In addition to the automotive focus, the areas of environmental technology and skilled labor will also come into focus starting in the second half of 2025,” explains Karl Hartleb, Managing Director of ICS.

“The aim of the trip was to position our innovative Styrian companies and their products and services as effectively as possible in the Indian market,” reports Christa Zengerer, Managing Director of AC Styria.

We would like to express our sincere thanks for the support of the Austrian Foreign Trade Center New Delhi.

Experiencing Innovation and Efficiency Up Close

The trip kicked off with a focus on two leading companies shaping the mobility of the future:

Mahindra Group
At the Mahindra Research Valley, everything revolves around tomorrow’s vehicle technology. Across 34 high-tech laboratories, work is underway on engine platforms, hybrid drivetrains, and dual-clutch transmissions – with close ties to European partners. Direct exchanges with development engineers demonstrated how strongly international collaboration drives innovation.

Hyundai Motor India Ltd.
Hyundai sets standards in industrial efficiency: 740,000 vehicles per year, one car every 31 seconds. The plant tour offered fascinating insights into highly automated processes. This was followed by B2B discussions with executives, focusing on exciting insights into market development and partnerships.

At the Austrian Business Circle networking dinner hosted by ADVANTAGE AUSTRIA INDIA that evening, initial contacts were deepened and new business approaches discussed.

Diversity, Technology, and New Approaches

India’s economy is characterized by diversity – and this was particularly evident on the second day. From an industrial conglomerate to an innovation partner for sustainable mobility to an academic innovation hub: the day offered valuable insights into various areas of the automotive industry, complemented by an in-depth exchange with the Tourism Minister of Tamil Nadu.

Simpson & Co. Ltd.
With over 47 companies and 50 production facilities, Amalgamations is one of the industry’s most important players. The presentations and discussions focused on global supply chains, new drive technologies, and India’s role as a manufacturing hub.

HENN Connector Group
This Vorarlberg-based company is a leading provider of coupling systems for air and fluid systems. A tour of the plant that opened in Chennai in March showed how state-of-the-art manufacturing technologies meet the highest quality standards. HENN invested around one million euros in the assembly plant and supplies high-quality plastic couplings from there to major automobile manufacturers in the Indo-Pacific market. The plant covers 1,500 m² and currently employs a dozen people – with the goal of expanding the workforce to more than 100.

Indian Institute of Technology, Madras
One of India’s leading innovation hubs. Particularly exciting: research projects on electrified drivetrains, new materials, and smart mobility. The exchange with scientists and start-ups provided new impetus on electrified drivetrains and sustainable materials.

Pune – one of India’s most important automotive centers, home to production facilities, research centers, and globally networked companies. Two market leaders gave us exciting insights into their strategies and manufacturing processes on the third day.

Tata Motors
A company with international influence: Tata Motors produces vehicles ranging from passenger cars to commercial vehicles and has a global presence through brands such as Jaguar Land Rover. The plant tour showed how the company relies on innovation, scaling, and strategic partnerships. The subsequent business talk focused on e-mobility and future markets.

Bajaj Auto Ltd
As India’s largest exporter of two-wheelers and a long-standing KTM partner, Bajaj Auto is a company with a global outlook. The plant tour made clear how the company is expanding its market position through technological innovation. Discussions centered on market opportunities, growth potential, and Europe’s role in the expansion strategy.

Our trade mission concluded on day four with a focus on two companies that play a key role in electromobility as manufacturers and suppliers.

JBM Group
A leading manufacturer of electric buses with 30,000 employees in more than 27 countries worldwide. In Delhi, JBM operates one of the world’s largest electric bus production facilities outside of China, with an annual capacity of 20,000 units. Highlights of the tour included state-of-the-art production lines and the company’s own charging infrastructure.

Maxop Engineering Co. Pvt Ltd
A specialist in complex cast parts and high-tech components for e-mobility. The company supplies OEM and Tier 1 customers worldwide. The plant tour showed how Maxop combines precision manufacturing with state-of-the-art production methods.

The delegation looks back on an intensive program that once again demonstrated the great potential of cooperation between Austria and India.