By IANS,
New Delhi : Automobile major Mahindra and Mahindra Thursday said it is in discussions with joint venture partner Renault to introduce new products in the Indian market.
“We are in talks with Renault to see if it makes sense to bring in another product to the production line,” Mahindra’s automotive sector president Pawan Goenka said at a select media interaction.
Mahindra formed the joint venture with French auto major Renault in 2005 to manufacture the mid-sized sedan Logan to tap the growing demand for cars in one of the world’s fastest growing economies.
Goenka said Renault would take a decision after August. “Things will depend on what Renault decides.”
He said Mahindra was still leading the utility segment with an increased market share of 64 percent.
However, the company has fared poorly in the passenger car category, with the Logan currently selling about 500 units a month, a sharp fall from 1,200 units till January this year.
Attributing this to the economic slowdown, Goenka said Mahindra has now redefined its business plan – it has reduced its capex by 10 percent from Rs.5,000 crore to Rs.4,500 crore, apart from putting new investments on hold.
“If the volume of Logan sales picks up, then we can increase the capacity of our manufacturing plant at Nashik,” he said.
The Nashik plant in Maharashtra will also manufacture vehicles for export to the US from December, Goenka said.
It is setting up another unit at Chakan, also in Maharashtra, that is expected to start production in November.
“We will start production in early November. The first product to be rolled out would be a light commercial vehicle, followed by a truck and a sports utilitiy vehicle (SUV),” Goenka said.
The product launches are scheduled for December.