New Delhi, November 11
India has enough potential for automakers, particularly because the car density here is about 35 per 1,000 people, said Hisashi Takeuchi, Managing Director and CEO of Maruti Suzuki.
Speaking to ANI, Takeuchi said that the Indian market is especially important for them because there's immense growth potential.
The Maruti Suzuki Managing Director said the car density in the US and Europe is as high as 600 per 1000 people.
"If you compare India's car density with Japan or the United States, the number of cars per 1,000 people here is still very low, while developed markets like Europe or the U.S. have over 600 cars per 1,000 people. This presents a huge opportunity in India, making it a crucial market that everyone wants to enter," said Maruti Suzuki MD.
Takeuchi also provided an update on Maruti Suzuki's new manufacturing facility in Kharkhoda, Haryana.
"We have begun construction at our Kharkhoda plant in Haryana, which will start production next April," he said.
This facility will eventually have the capacity to produce one million cars per year.
"With this addition, our production capacity in Haryana will reach two million units. In Gujarat, we plan to expand capacity to two million units as well. Combined, Maruti Suzuki will be able to produce four million cars annually, meeting the demands of both the Indian and export markets."
On the automaker's electric vehicle (EV) plans, Takeuchi said, he said they will showcase it at the Bharat Mobility Global Auto Show in January in India.
"We did the global premiere of our first electric SUV in Milan, Italy, and we will showcase it at the Bharat Mobility Global Auto Show in January in India. At this event, we'll introduce not only our first electric SUV but also the supporting ecosystem."
Maruti Suzuki India on Monday launched a new and updated version of one of its highest-selling sedan 'Dzire' in petrol and S-CNG models. The new Dzire has been launched at a price of Rs 679,000 going up to Rs 10,14,000 for the high-end AGS version.
"This time, the Dzire is a completely different car compared to previous generations. We've added numerous new features, enhanced the safety elements, and given it an attractive design. I'm confident this model will draw in many new customers," Takeuchi added.