Saietta Group PLC (AIM:SED) said it has expanded its portfolio of electric vehicle electric drivetrain products after completing development of a new vehicle control unit (VCU).
The VCU, which it described as acting as the 'brain' of the vehicle by controlling the complex operating systems to deliver a smooth driving experience, has completed final testing and been approved for real-world use.
It will be manufactured in India by Saietta VNA, a joint venture between Saietta Group and Padmini VNA, with the company planning to deliver first units as part of complete eDrive solutions to one of India’s largest manufacturers' three- and four-wheel lightweight electric vehicles (LEVs).
First deliveries for this supply arrangement to the LEV maker, which was announced last December, are “on track” to be delivered by the end of this year, with the agreement covering at least 80,000 complete systems over five years.
The VCU is “designed to be cost-effective for Asia and is highly modular”, said Tony Gott, executive chairman and interim chief executive, as with all elements of the company’s eDrive solutions.
“This allows our engineers to tailor the functionality precisely to a customer's requirements and thereby deliver a competitive edge."
The VCU was developed by Saietta in partnership with India-based tech consultant HCLTech as part of an ongoing collaboration that is expected to enable the end-to-end development of a “scalable, modular, safe and secure VCU architecture for LEVs”.