Mahindra to invest Rs 700 cr to become full range CV player

Home grown auto major Mahindra and Mahindra plans to invest Rs 700 crore in commercial vehicle (CV) vertical as it aims to become a full range player in the segment in the next two years.
Mahindra Truck and Bus Division (MTBD), a part of USD 16.9 billion Mahindra Group, plans to be a full range commercial vehicle player with focus on developing vehicles in the 9-16 tonnes range.
"We want to become a complete player in the commercial vehicle segment. Currently we are not present in the 9-16 tonnes segment. We are investing Rs 700 crore so that we have a full range of vehicles starting from 6 tonnes to 49 tonnes," Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M), President & Chief Executive - Truck & Power Train, Rajan Wadhera told PTI.

As part of the product development project which began last year, the company plans to introduce intermediate commercial vehicles (ICVs), medium commercial vehicles (MCVs), upgrade light commercial vehicles (LCVs) and consolidate its heavy commercial vehicles (HCV) segment, he added.
"Besides launching new products in the ICV and MCV segments, we plan to refurbish the existing LCV range. Also, we are looking to consolidate the HCV segment. We plan to launch a 49 tonne HCV by the end of this year," Wadhera said.
Commenting on the CV industry, he said the vertical has seen an upturn over the last few quarters which is a good sign, he added.

"At Mahindra we have been steadily growing and are fully committed to our commercial vehicles business and taking aggressive steps to become a complete CV range player. With planned investments and enhancement of our product portfolio, we look forward to ride the growth trajectory," Wadhera said.

With the Goods and Service Tax (GST) set to kick in, the company wants to be a full range commercial vehicle player so to encash the available opportunities, he added.
"With GST kicking in, logistics would undergo a lot of change so it would be better to be a full range player in the CV segment," Wadhera said.

MTBD, today announced the roll out of its 15,000th HCV from Chakan facility. In addition, the company also reached a sales milestone of 1,25,000 LCVs on Indian roads.
M&M shares were trading at Rs 1,216 apiece on BSE, down 3.02 per cent from previous close.