Business News

Daimler to invest over 900 million dollars in India plant

Mar 18, 2010, 11:40 GMT

New Delhi - German carmaker Daimler AG is to invest 4.4 billion rupees (967 million dollars) over the next five years to set up a manufacturing plant in the southern Indian city of Chennai, news reports said Thursday. The commercial vehicles plant would have the capacity to turn out 72,000 units annually, Marc Llistosella, managing director of Daimler India Commercial Vehicles Ltd (DICV) was quoted as saying by PTI news agency. Llistosella was speaking to reporters at the inauguration of a truck-testing facility in Chennai. DICV is the Indian arm of Daimler Trucks. The new 162-hectare plant, located at Oragadam near Chennai, is to manufacture light, medium and heavy commercial vehicles. The first units are expected to roll out in 2012. The plant will have an initial capacity of 36,000 units per year in the first phase, which will eventually be scaled up to 72,000 units, Llistosella said. Daimler had earlier planned to set up the Oragadam plant as a joint venture with India's Hero Group but the latter pulled out of the venture. Daimler ended its 50-year partnership with Tata Motors Limited in early March by selling its 5.34-per-cent stake in the Indian auto major for about 300 million euros (408.9 million dollars). Tata Motors is one of India's leading truck manufacturers and would be in direct competition with DICV once it starts truck production.

Business News

Daimler to invest over 900 million dollars in India plant

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