Japanese car manufacturers are streamlining their businesses to keep their heads in the profit-making top of the proverbial water. But it seems that Suzuki who is the 9th largest automotive manufacturer globally doesn’t have such problems. They have announced plans to pump up vehicle production to about 1.45 million vehicles in India, which is Asia’s third largest automobile market, by 2012.
This would mean that they would overtake production numbers at the company’s Japanese factories, which now stand at 1.4 million units annually. Growing production will be accomplished by investments of 2-4 billion yen (21 -43 million dollars) from its Indian arm, Maruti Suzuki, and will be used to upgrade two of its factories. This will increase its production capacity from 1 million units to 1.2 million for the time being.
Maruti Suzuki will also spend 33 billion yen (360 million dollars) to build a third plant which will see an output capacity of 250,000 units. This will be up and running by the mid part of 2012.
The move has been engineered amid Suzuki enjoying growing sales figures within the Indian subcontinent, largely due to inexpensive loans, a variety of new models and a recovery in demand. Models now available within the country include the Swift, the Swift DZire sedan, the A-Star and the SX4. Now you understand why Volkswagen wanted a piece of Suzuki?
