New Delhi. General Motors India is in the process of setting up a new facility to manufacture engine and transmission parts in the country. This is likely to be located in Maharashtra, where it already has a facility near Talegaon and would be operational by next year.
Mr Karl Slym, the newly appointed President and Managing Director of General Motors Corporation who took charge of the Indian operations with effect from October 1, in his first interaction with the media on Tuesday said, “We are evaluating setting up a manufacturing unit for powertrain products. However, the investment and the precise location of the new facility would be announced shortly.”
Currently, General Motors India is sourcing engine and transmission parts from its global facilities in different locations of the world depending on the product. “Initially, we would cater to the domestic market and later we would also be looking at exports,” said Mr P. Balendran, Vice-President, General Motors, India.
Mr Slym also said that the company would be launching its second sports utility vehicle, Captiva, after having introduced Tavera for the domestic market. Captiva, which is slated to hit the Indian roads during the Auto Expo here in January 2008, would compete with Honda’s CRV and Maruti Suzuki’s Grand Vitara.
To be imported as CBU
Initially, Captiva is to be imported as a completely built unit and depending on the demand, the company would decide on assembling it here.
Commenting on whether GM would be introducing another small car in the market following the healthy sales of Spark, Mr Balendran said that the company planned to launch a mini car which would be either a variant of the existing Spark or could be a new model from its global small car portfolio.
He said the company was eying the export market that would be served from its Talegaon facility, which would have a capacity of about 1.4 lakh units. With this, the company’s capacity would be about over 2.20-lakh units.
