Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India (HMSI) has inaugurated its new two wheeler manufacturing plant at Narsapura in Kolar district of Karnataka today.
HMSI says that the new plant is the most advanced of the three Indian plants. The other two manufacturing facilities are located in Manesar, Haryana and Tapukara, Rajasthan.
Spread across 96 acres, the factory is situated in Narsapura Industrial Area, about 52 km from Bangalore. The new plant employs around 4,500 associates. Honda has invested Rs. 1,350 crore on this project.
The new production facility will have an annual capacity of 12 lakh units in Phase-I which can be further increased by another 6 lakh units in phase-II by the end of this financial year. The new plant will begin production next month.
Honda is looking to increase its annual production capacity by 64% in a single financial year by expanding the operations in all its plants. The move would help the two wheeler maker cater to the increasing demand. By FY 2014, the company will have a staggering total annual production capacity of 46 lakh units!
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Keita Muramatsu, president and CEO of HMSI said: "With the inauguration of our 3rd plant which is 2,200 km from the two existing plants in North region, Honda aims to deliver high quality and advanced two wheeler products of low CO2 emissions to the customers faster in the South region. The expanded production capacity will be further supported by aggressive growth in network to 2500 outlets and rapid new product introduction as we aim for market leadership."
The plant will start with the production of the Dream Yuga commuter bike and will also assemble the best selling Honda Activa once the second line is ready. The plant will bring down the long waiting periods for the popular Honda models.
With the new plant, Honda is going all out to snatch the No. 1 position from Hero Motocorp.
