Tata Aims to Build 80,000 Nanos by March 2010

Tata is fully prepared to combat the global recession by using its own small car model. The Indian automaker plans to produce no less than 80,000 units by March 2010, a plan supposed to help it align its offering with the market demand as more and more buyers become interested in small-displacement and fuel-efficient models. According to The Hindu Business Line, the 623cc petrol-powered car will be manufactured at the Pantnagar plant in Uttarakhand, with first units expected to leave the factory at the end of February. In addition, engines and transmission systems will be supplied by the Pune facility, the aforementioned source added.

“We have inferred from discussions with the company that barely 7,000 cars will be produced by the end of March, going up to 80,000 units next fiscal. Ramping up huge volumes at Pantnagar is difficult because this is an interim arrangement before the Sanand facility in Gujarat is ready,” an insider told The Hindu Business Line. “Volumes will finally depend on market conditions and if the slowdown persists even next year, then projections will be revised downwards.”

Besides this enthusiastic plan, Tata also plans to debut a diesel version of Nano in late 2010 or early 2011, according to some Indian suppliers. However, more details about this project are yet to be unveiled.

Tata initially planned to produce 96,000 cars this year but, due to the economic downturn, the annual output was slashed to 50,000 units. But even so, 15,000 Nanos produced by the Pantnagar facility may be released in the fourth quarter, despite the fact that “it looks as if only half that number will be achieved,” as some suppliers stated quoted by the aforementioned source.