Aditi Shah

NEW DELHI, (Reuters) – Stellantis will introduce two new SUVs (sport-utility vehicles) to India in order to increase sales in a country where the company has had a difficult time making a mark.

The company will introduce the Meridian, a three-row, mid-sized SUV that Jeep has built in India. It will also launch the Grand Cherokee which it will build in India. This move will enable it to lower its vehicle prices.

Christian Meunier chief executive, Jeep, stated to journalists in Mumbai that “We must grow in India”,

Jeep holds less than 1% of India’s auto market. In 2012, the company announced it was going to invest $250m in order to launch four SUVs.

Meunier indicated that while he is not happy about India’s volumes, he would not lower the prices of cars to expand the company’s market share.

According to him, he wants Brazil to become the benchmark in India for SUV sales. Jeep currently sells over 15,000 SUVs per month in Brazil across three models. In India, Jeep only sells about 1,000 SUVs per month.

We are not going to invest all our money in India to get no success. He stated that we are not here to lose but to win.

Jeep has been working to electrify their portfolio by 2025. Meunier however says they will not bring electric vehicles into India until the country is ready.

India has been pushing automobile manufacturers to make clean-fuel vehicles to cut its oil import bill. However, electric car sales have struggled to gain traction. The high cost of electric cars and the inaffluent public charging infrastructure are two reasons why.