India's biggest carmaker, Maruti Suzuki India, announced that it will spend $333 million to build a new diesel-engine plant to meet burgeoning demand for lower fuel-cost vehicles.
The plant will be built in Gurgaon, a satellite city of the Indian capital New Delhi, and start up by the middle of 2013, Maruti chairman R.C. Bhargava said.
'This will be a brand new unit and will be owned by the company,' said Mr Bhargava.
The plant, to be built in stages, will have a total production capacity of 300,000 engines, Mr Bhargava said.
Maruti is majority-owned by Japan's Suzuki Motor Corp.
'We are going to invest Rs17 billion ($333 million) to set up the diesel plant, which will be constructed inside our Gurgaon manufacturing facility,' he said.
Maruti makes all its petrol engines at its Gurgaon plant. It also has manufacturing operations in nearby Manesar.
It currently sources diesel engines from Suzuki Powertrain India and Fiat India.
The company plans to produce 150,000 diesel engines in the first year of operation at the Gurgaon plant, reaching 300,000 in 2014.
India, which has been one of the world's fastest-growing car markets in recent years, suffered a slowdown in demand in 2011 as many buyers decided to defer purchases or cancel them due to costly loans and rising fuel expenses.
But demand for diesel vehicles has surged in India as the fuel is subsidised by the government and costs far less than gasoline.
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The plant will be built in Gurgaon, a satellite city of the Indian capital New Delhi, and start up by the middle of 2013, Maruti chairman R.C. Bhargava said.
'This will be a brand new unit and will be owned by the company,' said Mr Bhargava.
The plant, to be built in stages, will have a total production capacity of 300,000 engines, Mr Bhargava said.
Maruti is majority-owned by Japan's Suzuki Motor Corp.
'We are going to invest Rs17 billion ($333 million) to set up the diesel plant, which will be constructed inside our Gurgaon manufacturing facility,' he said.
Maruti makes all its petrol engines at its Gurgaon plant. It also has manufacturing operations in nearby Manesar.
It currently sources diesel engines from Suzuki Powertrain India and Fiat India.
The company plans to produce 150,000 diesel engines in the first year of operation at the Gurgaon plant, reaching 300,000 in 2014.
India, which has been one of the world's fastest-growing car markets in recent years, suffered a slowdown in demand in 2011 as many buyers decided to defer purchases or cancel them due to costly loans and rising fuel expenses.
But demand for diesel vehicles has surged in India as the fuel is subsidised by the government and costs far less than gasoline.
....more info