Renault, the car maker from France is planning an investment of 1.5 billion euros (approximately Rs.10,335 crore) in the auto market of India. The company has plans of developing a small car, having low cost, for the Indian market. The company has already initiated discussions with the Gujarat government for opening a new plant in that state.
Renault in association with Nissan, its global partner, are working on developing a small car that is going to be fully customized in its design and engineering in accordance with the requirements and needs of the customers in India and also taking into account the road conditions in the country. The new small car from Renault-Nissan is going to be manufactured from a new facility that the company is going to set up and the likely location for the same seems to be Gujarat as of now.
An official working for the Gujarat government has said in a recent statement that the Company has had meetings, behind closed doors, with top officials in the Gujarat government around two weeks back. He also said that Renault was looking on the viabilities of having a plant set up in Gujarat. They were looking for suitable land near Vadodara that they could acquire. The Vadodara location is ideal for them giving its proximity to all the ports within the state.
The latest small car from Renault-Nissan is being expected to have a price between Rs.2 lakh and Rs.4 lakh. It is expected to compete with brands like Tata Nano, Chevrolet Spark and Maruti Alto. This new car is part of the top-to-down strategy that Renault has applied for the Indian auto market. The car is expected to be seen on Indian roads by 2015, only after the company establishes itself in all the other higher priced segments.
