MUMBAI -- Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. plans to more than double the production of the XUV500, its new sport-utility vehicle, in phases over the next eight months to meet strong demand in the local market and also to export it, a senior executive said.
ndia's biggest SUV maker by sales will boost the monthly output of the XUV500 by half to 3,000 vehicles in January and increase it further to 5,000 units in June, Pawan Goenka, Mahindra's president for automotive business, said late Wednesday.
Most of Mahindra's parts suppliers have confirmed that they can ramp up capacity to meet its production target of 3,000 units in January, Goenka said. "We expect the rest to confirm soon."
Mumbai-based Mahindra introduced the XUV500 on Sept. 29 and makes 2,000 units of the vehicle a month at its factory in west India. The XUV500, which has a 2.2-liter diesel engine, costs between 1.08 million rupees ($21,951) and 1.30 million rupees at showrooms in New Delhi.
India's SUV segment has been growing despite the current sluggishness in car sales. Growing disposable incomes and a trend for off-road travel have ensured robust sales in this segment, especially for Mahindra's products such as the Xylo and the Scorpio.
Mahindra Wednesday said it has received more than 8,000 customer orders for the XUV500 in the first 10 days, forcing it to temporarily stop taking fresh orders.
The company, which sells the vehicle in five Indian cities, said also it won't immediately extend sales to other cities, given there is already a waiting period of 17 weeks.
Local media reports have recently cited Mr. Goenka as saying Mahindra may defer its export plans for the XUV500 to first satisfy local demand.
Mr. Goenka, however, said it has already sent the first consignment of the XUV500 to South Africa and will decide in the next month and half on plans to export to markets such as western Europe, South America and South Asia.
"We have to prioritize on local demand now, reach a comfortable position with the production levels and then decide on further exports," he said.
Source: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203914304576628120571557208.html?mod=googlenews_wsj
ndia's biggest SUV maker by sales will boost the monthly output of the XUV500 by half to 3,000 vehicles in January and increase it further to 5,000 units in June, Pawan Goenka, Mahindra's president for automotive business, said late Wednesday.
Most of Mahindra's parts suppliers have confirmed that they can ramp up capacity to meet its production target of 3,000 units in January, Goenka said. "We expect the rest to confirm soon."
Mumbai-based Mahindra introduced the XUV500 on Sept. 29 and makes 2,000 units of the vehicle a month at its factory in west India. The XUV500, which has a 2.2-liter diesel engine, costs between 1.08 million rupees ($21,951) and 1.30 million rupees at showrooms in New Delhi.
India's SUV segment has been growing despite the current sluggishness in car sales. Growing disposable incomes and a trend for off-road travel have ensured robust sales in this segment, especially for Mahindra's products such as the Xylo and the Scorpio.
Mahindra Wednesday said it has received more than 8,000 customer orders for the XUV500 in the first 10 days, forcing it to temporarily stop taking fresh orders.
The company, which sells the vehicle in five Indian cities, said also it won't immediately extend sales to other cities, given there is already a waiting period of 17 weeks.
Local media reports have recently cited Mr. Goenka as saying Mahindra may defer its export plans for the XUV500 to first satisfy local demand.
Mr. Goenka, however, said it has already sent the first consignment of the XUV500 to South Africa and will decide in the next month and half on plans to export to markets such as western Europe, South America and South Asia.
"We have to prioritize on local demand now, reach a comfortable position with the production levels and then decide on further exports," he said.
Source: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970203914304576628120571557208.html?mod=googlenews_wsj
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