After promising to introduce a number of products in the commercial vehicle and passenger vehicle segment in the current financial year, Tata Motors, India's leading CV manufacturer, may bring its pick-up trucks, a joint venture product with Thonburi of Thailand, to Indian shores.
Tata Motors will benefit from low excise and import duties due to the free trade agreement that exists between India and Thailand. As per the agreement, zero duty imports will be put into effect by 2010.
In December 2006, a 70:30 joint venture was signed between Tata Motors and Thonburi to manufacture, assemble and market pickup trucks in that country. Thonburi's facility, which is expected to go on stream in October this year, will be used for the venture. Both the parties had invested Rs 120 crore (Rs 1.20 billion) into the project.
Praveen Kadle, executive director - Finance, Tata Motors, said, "The company may look at the option of bringing our pick-up trucks to the Indian market which would be built in Thailand."
The company may market these products in India to see the initial response before going for its commercial production locally. Kadle, however, declined to comment on the size of import that the company may consider for India insisting that it was too early to comment on it.
Tata Motors plans to manufacture 12,000 units on a single shift basis in the initial phase and will gradually ramp-up its production to 30,000 units by 2009.
The truck will be a 1-tonne pick-up truck, based on a space cab platform, powered by a 3 litre, Dicor engine which will be manufactured locally in Thailand. The localisation content will be 50 per cent initially, which could be ramped up to 80 per cent.
Thailand being the second largest pick-up market in the world after the United States, sold more than 4.5 million units during 2006-07.
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