Tata Motors plans to launch an LCV lighter than ACE

The country’s largest auto maker, Tata Motors, today said it would launch a light commercial vehicle (LCV) which would be smaller than its best-selling LCV, Ace, which opened up a new market.

The company has earmarked a capital expenditure of Rs 10,000 crore for the next two years.

“We are seriously looking at a smaller LCV than Ace which has a capacity of carrying a load of 750 kg,” Tata Motors Managing Director told reporters on the sidelines of the Siam annual convention here.

The company would roll out the proposed smaller LCV from its Pantnagar facility, which has a production capacity of 225,000 units per annum.

When asked about the company's capex outlay, Telang said: “At any point of time, the company works with a capex of Rs 6,000-10,000 crore for a two to three-year period.”

He, however, declined to give details of how the company would utilise this amount.

Tata Motors would roll out a new Indigo within the next few months, Telang said.

On sales, Telang said: “Our LCV segment is doing good, but the medium and heavy commercial segment is flat in the first four months of this fiscal. Passenger car segment is growing faster.”

The company is expecting its overall sales to remain in the positive territory during this fiscal, he said, adding the total production utilisation of its plants is about 65 per cent at present.

On its small car, Nano, Telang said: “The production at the Sanand plant in Gujarat will start by the end of this financial year.”

Meanwhile, the outgoing president of Siam, Ravi Kant, today called for a need to continue government-industry partnership to ensure investments in the sector are used productively.

“The industry is not out of the woods and needs support and encouragement, at least during the whole of the financial year. Over Rs 78,000 crore is being invested in the sector,” Kant said here while addressing the Siam annual convention