OCTOBER 20258PTC INDUSTRIES, BHARAT DYNAMICS JOIN FORCES TO BOOST DEFENCEBMW INDIA BOOSTS LOCAL EV PRODUCTION WITH IX1 LWB LAUNCHBMW India is accelerating its electric vehicle (EV) plan as the local assembly of the BMW iX1 Long Wheelbase (LWB) begins at the Chennai plant. With this, India becomes the first right-hand drive market in the world for the local production of the iX1. This is an inflection point for BMW in its EV localization agenda.After getting the green light from all the regulators, the partnership aims at India not only cutting down the import percentage but also raising India's domestic manufacturing sector of high-tech defence equipment keeping in pace with the present and far-reaching future demands.Through PTC Industries, India can gain with its materials science skills and precision engineering capabilities, while Bharat Dynamics is the perfect partner with its expertise in systems integration and Defence-Technology Development. The first step, thus, is to develop a fully integrated "design to delivery" ecosystem equipped with a manufacturing system for cutting-edge Technologies such as liquid- and solid-rocket motors, ramjet and turbojet engines -- the core of the next-generation Defence platforms.The partnership perfectly fits the government's `Make in India' and `Atmanirbhar Bharat'' initiatives, in that it is the one that will give India technological autonomy in defence. By the establishment of this joint venture, the country will be able to see the returns not only in terms of strategic self-reliance that is deepened but also domestic manufacturing base that is enhanced, innovation that is accelerated and employment that is generated across the defence-industrial value chain. This German luxury carmaker is seeking to make India the EV hub of its Asian ambitions, also aligning with its larger ambitions for EVs to make up approximately 30 percent of sales to total sales by the year 2030, a modest increase from the current 21 percent. Hardeep Singh Brar, President and CEO of BMW Group India, remarked that this will reduce costs and accessibility and enhance BMW's position in the premium EV segment.BMW has already demonstrated a strong momentum in the luxury EV segment in India, having sold 2,509 electric BMWs and MINIs between January and September 2025 - a growth of 246% year-on-year. The top accessory, the best-selling BMW iX1, was closely followed by the flagship i7 and the brand crossed 5,000 cumulative EV deliveries since 2022.Moving forward, BMW expects to begin manufactur-ing the iX3 locally by the first half of 2027 on the new-class platform, which provides next-gen electric power and features of a luxury SUV.While their rivals - Mercedes-Benz India, for example - have also entered local productions of EVs, most luxury carmakers including BMW has not fully complied with State EV incentives, even as the competition heats up to command the premium electric segment. TOP STORIESPTC Industries Limited, has made a bold move to enhance India's defence manufacturing sector by entering into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Bharat Dynamics Limited. The MoU reflects the inauguration of PTC's Titanium & Superalloys Materials Plant in Lucknow, and it is a new beginning for a joint-venture company that will be the forefront of designing, developing and manufacturing systems of propulsion.Among the many things that the new company will be working on, the first one will be the focus of complete propulsion systems, guided bombs and aero-engines for missiles and drones as well as loitering munitions.
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