Palaniswami flags off ‘Kona’, India’s 1st electric SUV

He also took a ride in the car after flagging it off at the State Secretariat in the presence of Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam and officials from Hyundai. Once fully charged for about six hours, the car could travel up to a distance of 452 km. Hyundai is in talks with Indian Oil to setup charging stations at its fuel outlets for providing fast charging facility. It would develop infrastructure at select fuel stations in select cities including, Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai and Bengaluru.

Hyundai Motors India Limited (HMIL) would invest on the equipment and installation of these fast chargers (CCS type Sinle Port). These chargers could charge 80 per cent of the battery capacity in less than an hour.

Meanwhile, a company release said the launch of Kona Electric was part of HMIL’s commitment to invest Rs 7,000 crore in Tamil Nadu. The company had signed a MoU with the state government at the second Global Investors Meet in January this year for making electric cars.

HMIL MD and CEO SS Kim said, ‘’It is a moment of pride to share that Kona-Electric is an expression of our commitment to the Indian market and bringing clean mobility solutions in India.’’

He said Kona has received overwhelming customer response with 120 confirmed bookings within 15 days of its launch. Kona would be available with three-year warranty and unlimited kms, along with an eight-year warranty and upto 160,000 kms for its high voltagebattery.