Hinduja plans for India include cars too

The Hindujas have indicated that they might enter into the passenger car business in India, and are open to investments in the sector.

The Hinduja group flagship Ashok Leyland is already one of the big players in trucks in India. Ashok Leyland manufactures around 85,000 commercial vehicles annually in India.

Even  as car manufacturing plans remain a possibility, the Hinduja group has lined up expansion plans and is reportedly gearing up for the manufacture of as many as one lakh LCVs at its greenfield facility, coming up near the Tamil Nadu capital of Chennai. The group would be pumping in close to Rs 2,600 crore into that project.

Apart from this, Ashok Leyland is also gearing up to invest nearly Rs 1500 crore to boost production of its facilities at Ennore and Hosur.

Meanwhile, Ashok Leyland’s joint venture with Nissan Motor is also on track; the JV would begin production of light trucks in year 2010-11 at its plant at Pillaipakkam in Chennai, the company has said. The joint venture came into effect in May 2007, and is aimed at making light trucks. The plant has an initial capacity of 1 lakh light trucks.

The Ashok Leyland-Nissan joint venture is also aimed at powertrain manufacture and technology. A fifth of total output would be exported. Reports said that the Leyland-Nissan joint venture has committed to investments of about $538 million.

Apart from the light truck venture, Ashok Leyland is also on course to expand capacity for medium and heavy trucks. The country’s second-biggest bus and truck maker hopes to more than double its capacity in the future.