Photo: Ford
For years, Ford has been struggling to rearrange its business strategy in what is now the largest auto market in the world, China. For various reasons, Ford is among the few global carmakers to have missed the success train in that country, and now the Blue Oval is doing its best to avoid something similar happening elsewhere.
After China, India is viewed as the next El Dorado of car sales, with forecasts showing an explosive growth over the coming years. Unlike China, Ford is however better positioned here for what’s to come.
In 2017, the American carmaker allied itself with one of the largest car companies in Asia, Mahindra. That alliance is now growing even further as the two announced the creation of a new joint venture to handle the local market, as well as other “high-growth emerging markets around the world.”
“Emerging economies including India are expected to account for one in three future vehicle sales,” justified the need for the joint venture Mahindra’s managing director Pawan Goenka.
“The joint venture will have a distinct product portfolio with shared platforms and powertrains, the newest technology, high quality and engineering standards from both Mahindra and Ford, at optimized costs.”
The joint venture is valued at $275 million and will not be owned equally. Mahindra gets 51 percent of the new entity and Ford the rest.
A good chunk of Ford’s local operations will be passed under the control of the new joint venture, including its personnel and assembly plants in Chennai and Sanand. The Blue Oval will only retain the engine plant operations in Sanand, the Global Business Services unit, Ford Credit and Ford Smart Mobility.
From a product standpoint, the new company will set out to create at first three new utility vehicles, starting with a midsize one that will be based on a Mahindra platform. Electric vehicles are scheduled to follow soon after that.
The midsized SUV was already previewed earlier in April, when the two partners said it will be branded both as a Ford and as a Mahindra and sold independently.
In 2017, the American carmaker allied itself with one of the largest car companies in Asia, Mahindra. That alliance is now growing even further as the two announced the creation of a new joint venture to handle the local market, as well as other “high-growth emerging markets around the world.”
“Emerging economies including India are expected to account for one in three future vehicle sales,” justified the need for the joint venture Mahindra’s managing director Pawan Goenka.
“The joint venture will have a distinct product portfolio with shared platforms and powertrains, the newest technology, high quality and engineering standards from both Mahindra and Ford, at optimized costs.”
The joint venture is valued at $275 million and will not be owned equally. Mahindra gets 51 percent of the new entity and Ford the rest.
A good chunk of Ford’s local operations will be passed under the control of the new joint venture, including its personnel and assembly plants in Chennai and Sanand. The Blue Oval will only retain the engine plant operations in Sanand, the Global Business Services unit, Ford Credit and Ford Smart Mobility.
From a product standpoint, the new company will set out to create at first three new utility vehicles, starting with a midsize one that will be based on a Mahindra platform. Electric vehicles are scheduled to follow soon after that.
The midsized SUV was already previewed earlier in April, when the two partners said it will be branded both as a Ford and as a Mahindra and sold independently.
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