Mar 31 2009
VW unveils new Indian plant
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Europes largest car-maker Volkswagen on Tuesday opened a new plant in western India, which it hopes will eventually roll out 110,000 vehicles a year for the growing domestic market.
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The new plant, established with 580 million 767 million of investment close to Pune, southeast of Mumbai, will begin building the Skoda Fabia compact car in May, the company said in a statement.
All cars produced at the 2. An Indian version of the VW Polo hatchback will be added in 2010, it added. VW entered India in 2001, opening up a plant in Aurangabad, and also in Maharashtra state, to build Skoda, VW and Audi cars.3-million-square-metre 575 acre plant - VWs most modern, which should employ 2,500 people - will be destined for the Indian market. .
Officials said that despite the global economic crisis, Indias automobile market has huge potential going ahead. Thanks to the local production of Volkswagen and Skoda models in Pune, we will benefit even more from enormous growth on the Indian automobile market in future, he said at the opening ceremony.2 million vehicles to over two million vehicles by 2014, VW board member Jochem Heizmann said. Like its rivals, VW has been hit by a sharp slump in the global automobile market but says it has fared better than its competitors, in part owing to a growing presence in emerging markets.
The new VW Beetle is scheduled to make its debut in India by the end of next year. Worldwide, VW made 6.
The German auto giant sold close toly 19,000 vehicles in India by the end of December 2008 - 47 percent up on the same period a year earlier. Of those, two-thirds - or 4.34 million vehicles. Indias Tata Motors is also betting on big growth in the domestic market, having launched the worlds cheapest car, the Nano, last week.2 million - were built outside Germany.
