Renault, the French automaker, launched a strong-hybrid version of its Duster sport utility vehicle in India on October 17. Its India chief says hybrids and compressed natural gas models could make up half of the company’s India sales within two to three years.
Entrance to Renault’s Usine du Mans plant in Le Mans, France. (Photo: OldLion alias stephvvv, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons)
Stéphane Deblaise, chief executive of Renault Group India, laid out the plan in an interview with The Hindu BusinessLine and in remarks at the launch. “Hybrid is the new diesel,” he said in the interview.
What the new Duster offers
The Duster Strong Hybrid E-Tech 160 pairs a 1.8-liter gasoline engine with two electric motors and a 1.4-kilowatt-hour battery. Combined output is 160 metric horsepower. Renault claims fuel economy of twenty-nine kilometers per liter (sixty-eight miles per gallon), certified by the Automotive Research Association of India. Deblaise said comparable diesel vehicles manage twenty-one kilometers per liter. The price starts at $17,900 at current exchange rates.
Renault says the battery lets the car run on electric power alone for up to 80% of city driving, depending on conditions. The company positions the car as a replacement for diesel, and Deblaise said it should cost the same as a diesel model.
A small market and a small share
Strong hybrids are still a narrow category. According to media reports, India sold 123,000 strong-hybrid passenger vehicles in the fiscal year ending March 2026, and registrations rose 10% to 86,403 in the first nine months of 2026. Renault’s share of India’s passenger-vehicle market is below 1%. Deblaise said the company could reach 3% to 5% by 2030, and described that as an outcome of its product and customer work rather than a formal target.
He also said hybrids and CNG together could reach half of sales, though Renault has set no target for it. Renault expects hybrids to matter most in models longer than four meters and CNG in smaller ones. It plans factory-fitted CNG versions of the Triber and the Kiger. Deblaise said CNG represents approximately 25% of the relevant market and that Renault has not participated adequately in it until now.
Seven models through 2030
The launch is part of a plan for seven models through 2030 across gasoline, CNG, strong-hybrid and electric power, built on two platforms. A sub-four-meter SUV called the Bridger is due at the end of 2027, and an electric model is expected in 2028. Deblaise said the Bridger’s development program runs approximately eighty-eight weeks, which he credited to engineering strength in India and a short decision loop between engineering, manufacturing, product planning and marketing. Renault has no plans to put the hybrid system in the Kwid, Triber or Kiger, because it would require significant engineering changes.
India as an export and engineering base
Renault wants annual exports from India to reach $2.2 billion by 2030, covering vehicles, components and engineering services. It also targets up to 90% localization across future programs to hold down costs. Deblaise described the company’s engineering and design operations in Chennai, in southern India, as its largest outside Europe. Renault says it has sold more than one million vehicles with its E-Tech hybrid technology worldwide since 2020.
Deblaise acknowledged gaps in service infrastructure and parts pricing, according to media reports, and said Renault is looking at more localization and stronger dealer training.
Why it matters
Renault is using India for more than sales. It plans to develop vehicles, source parts and engineer products there for export, while it works to lift a market share below 1%.
