Chevrolet to invest $ 1 bn in India; launch 10 cars in 5 yrs

Chevrolet has confirmed that it will make a new investment of US$ 1 billion (Rs. 6,400 crores) in India. The announcement was made in Delhi during General Motors (GM) CEO Mary Barra’s second visit to the country in 12 months. The company has already invested US $1 billion in India since 1996.

According to the company, the new investment is expected to create approximately 12,000 new jobs for GM India and its suppliers. The company also plans to increase product localization and expand its dealer network in the country.

The majority of the new investment will be used to strengthen the company’s manufacturing facility in Talegaon. At present, the facility has a yearly production capacity of 1,30,000 vehicles. The company plans to increase this number to 2,20,000 units by 2025. It aims to make the plant a global export hub for GM, with more than 30% of its annual production planned for markets outside India.

The GM India plant at Halol, Gujarat will stop producing cars by the second half of 2016.

This investment is a part of the US$  5 billion investment that Chevrolet had announced for the development of an all-new vehicle family for Brazil, China, Mexico and India. The new global vehicle family will have several different body styles. The vehicles will be manufactured and sold in India and will be exported worldwide. However, there are no plans to export these cars to developed markets such as the US.

Chevrolet is aiming to double its market share in India by 2020. It plans to roll out ten new locally produced Chevrolet models within the space of five years. They include the Trailblazer SUV, which will go on sale in October 2015, and the Spin MPV, which will be launched in early 2017.