Acknowledging the growing demand for SUVs in the Indian market, Tata Motors is looking at remodelling its Sanand-I plant to make bigger cars, according to Shailesh Chandra, managing director, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicle and Tata Passenger Electric Mobility Limited (TPEML).
The Sanand-1 plant produces cars run on petrol, CNG and electric powertrains, and was the first Tata Motor factory for CNG and electric cars, according to Chandra. “This is the factory where Tata Motors first started its EV production.” The factory contributes 25% of total cars being produced by the company. Recently, after acquiring another plant from Ford India Limited in Sanand, the first plant has been renamed Sanand-I and the acquired is now Sanand-II.
“Presently, the passenger car market is clearly driven by the sale of SUVs in terms of volumes. The car size is getting bigger, and we will have to enable certain shops within the factory to help do that. At the Sanand-I plant, we have already remodelled the assembly line before to accommodate different powertrains,” Chandra said.
“Going forward, depending on the demand, the plant has enough flexibility to be re-modelled again and accommodate the manufacturing of bigger cars. The plant should have the same flexibility as any other plant to make cars of any size so that you are not vulnerable to segmental shifts,” he said.