Ineos Grenadier EV on the cards as newcomer explores zero emissions

February 16, 2022February 25, 2022 John Carey 3317 Views grenadier, ineos grenadier

Car industry newcomer Ineos is assessing whether a battery electric version of its Grenadier 4WD could be made to work.

Ineos Automotive commercial director Mark Tennant said the company was studying the feasibility of installing a battery pack in the hefty off-roader, due to go into production in ICE-powered form from July.

With a bulky pack weighing around one tonne needed for an acceptable driving range, Tennant said he thought creating a Grenadier EV was “a tall order” with existing battery technology.

British-owned Ineos, in collaboration with Hyundai, is already working to develop “demonstration” electric-powered Grenadier fitted with a hydrogen fuel cell (mock-up pictured above) from the Korean car maker. It’s more proof-of-concept project than production prototype, apparently.

But Tennant points out that Ineos, already a giant of the global chemical industry, has a good reason to favour fuel cells over batteries. The company produces 300,000 to 400,000 tonnes of hydrogen a year, he said.

Ineos Grenadier testing in Australia
Ineos Grenadier testing in Australia
Ineos Grenadier testing in Australia
Ineos Grenadier testing in Australia

EV Central spoke with Tennant at the Ineos factory in France, where production of the Grenadier is scheduled to ramp up from July. Ineos bought the plant, which turned out 2.5 million Smart cars, from Mercedes-Benz.

Since 2019 Smart has been a joint venture, with Mercedes-Benz and Geely, the Chinese company which owns Volvo and Polestar, holding equal shares. Last year the Ineos factory turned out 27,000 Smart EQ ForTwo EVs and will continue to produce them until 2024.

While Ineos weighs its electric options, production of the ICE-powered Grenadier will gradually ramp up to 25,000 to 30,000 a year by 2025.

Demand for the Grenadier – which was inspired by the previous Land Rover Defender – in Australia has been surprisingly strong, according to Tennant. “Australia has blown us away the most,” he said. Ineos has already taken 15,000 deposits for the Grenadier, with the UK, US, Germany and, unexpectedly, Australia topping the list.

That demand could boom further when the promised ute version arrives in 2023. With ute sales making up one in five vehicle sales in Australia, it wouldn’t need to nab much of the market to account for decent sales for a fledgling brand.

An Ineos Grenadier is already undergoing testing in Australia ahead of first deliveries late in 2022.

Huge, heavy and totally unaerodynamic, the first Grenadiers with their BMW-made turbo six-cylinder petrol and diesel engines are sure be the opposite of green. Their size, weight and shape means they’re going to be big-time fuel-burners and massive CO2 emitters.

But Ineos is at least looking seriously at alternatives…

John Carey

Grew up in country NSW, way back when petrol was laced with lead. Has written about cars and the car business for more than 35 years, working full-time and freelance for leading mags, major newspapers and websites in Australia and (sometimes) overseas. Avidly interested in core EV technologies like motors and batteries, and believes the switch to electromobility definitely should be encouraged. Is waiting patiently for someone to make a good and affordable EV that will fit inside his tiny underground garage in northern Italy, where he's lived for the past decade. Likes the BMW i3, but it's just too damned wide...