Ford is looking to expand its overseas operations to a total of 50 markets with the help of the new Sanand plant that commenced operations earlier this month.
Making India a major manufacturing hub for the company, a highly ambitious Ford India inaugurated its new state-of-the-art production facility in Sanand, Gujarat that will be catering to the demand in domestic and overseas markets. Having attracted an investment of $1 billion (around Rs. 5000 crores), the new facility is the automaker’s second in the country and will not only double Ford’s production capacity but will also triple the automaker’s exports from India over the next five years, said Ford CEO Mark Fields on the occasion.
Ford India at present exports around 60,000-70,000 units annually to over 35 countries globally from the Chennai-based facility alone. With the Sanand facility, the company aims to export to a total of 50 markets from India which will turn into a major growth provider. The Sanand plant has been built on a 460 acre land and has an installed capacity of 2.4 lakh vehicles and 2.7 lakh engines annually. With both the plants operational, Ford India will have a total installed capacity of 4.4 lakh vehicles and 6.1 lakh engines every year.
The first vehicle to be produced at the Sanand plant is the Figo Aspire compact sedan that was showcased to the media at the inauguration. The company will also commence production of the next generation Figo hatchback later this year at the plant. The new facility has given employment to over 4000 persons directly and an additional 2000 from ancillary units around the facility. The company aims to make India an export hub in the coming years while also increasing its market share in the domestic space.
