Could the revamped, adapted Logan be produced in Renault’s Chennai facility?
Could we see a repeat of the Ford – M&M JV? Possibly.
In my opinion, M&M should be on its own. They are doing the right thing by concentrating on the necessary aspects of business (R&D and new vehicle development) in passenger and commercial vehicle segments. Their Renault JV today is a small bit of their business and was never a cash cow.
Renault has announced plans to produce two new cars at its Chennai plant. It is expected that these two cars are the Fluence and Koleos which were showcased at the Auto Expo 2010 in Delhi. The larger plan is to launch five cars (including the Fluence and Koleos) over the next 4 years. That is good news for the Indian market.
Sudhir Rao, Renault India’s Chief Operating Officer had this to say to Times of India -
India is a tough market, but a growing market. It is an opportunity for us to start again, Renault plans to set up a new distribution network, which should grow to about 150 dealerships by 2014.
Renault will be doing this all by itself and will not involve M&M. IAB earlier reported that the JV with M&M is under the scanner with countless theories doing the rounds. We still do not have any clarity on the status of the JV as the announcement from Renault pertains to the new car models. Nonetheless, this is a big indicator on the JV. Why should Renault invest in a production facility and also continue a JV with M&M?
Source – Times of India
[...] But before launching a number of products Renault and Nissan would be looking to increase the number of its dealers in India. The company would be increasing the number of dealers from 11 to 20 during Nissan Micra’s launch, 40 by March 2011 and more than 100 by 2013. [...]
[...] The company now after parting ways with M&M, faces the daunting task of setting up its own dealer network for its soon to be launched products, since it currently does not have a single dealer in the whole country. The company plans to have a network of 70 dealers in the country by 2013-2014. [...]