Tata Motors plans two new plants, targets one million vehicles
The Economic Times — December 18, 2006

Tata Motors will set up two new greenfield plants in the country as part of its Rs 10,000-crore expansion programme to meet the target of more than doubling annual sales to one million units over the next five years.

"In five years time we expect to more than double our overall sales. Last year we sold four lakh vehicles. We are looking at close to a million vehicles in the next five years," Tata Motors managing director Ravi Kant said.

He said Tata Motors would set up new manufacturing units besides expanding capacity of its existing facilities. "We are in the process of expansion of our plants in Pune, Jamshedpur and Lucknow. But it won't be sufficient and thus we would be going in for one or two more greenfield plants," Kant said, adding the that company was setting up new plants in Uttaranchal and West Bengal.

The company is banking on the success of its small truck, Ace, and the yet-to-be launched Rs 1-lakh car (to be out by mid-2008) for the push in sales.

Kant said Tata Motors will also increase the capacity of its overseas assembly units, including those in Korea and Casablanca. On Ace, he said the company was targeting to sell about one lakh units next fiscal. "We will sell 65,000 units of Ace this year and next year, when we start selling the vehicle across the country, we hope to sell over one lakh units," Kant said, adding the company's new plant in Uttaranchal would start production by March 2007.

The plant would have a capacity of 2.5 lakh units of Ace, Kant said, adding that Tata Motors was working on the passenger vehicle version of Ace as well, though declining to divulge the timeframe for its market launch.