For Indian automobile manufacturers struggling to escape a wide spectrum sales slowdown, the next two years are likely to present an all-new challenge: competition from across the Himalayas. And leading the charge of the Chinese auto brigade is Great Wall Motors (GWM), one of the east Asian country’s largest automobile players.
The company is among three major Chinese auto manufacturers, which have confirmed India forays during the Auto Expo organised in New Delhi last week. While GWM has indicated that it will launch its first India product sometime next year, its compatriots Changan Auto and FAW Group’s Haima Automobile are planning to make their India debuts a little later.
For Great Wall and its Chinese peers, the Indian market offers substantial potential despite its current problems. “The Chinese auto market is approaching saturation like the western market, but India is still largely untapped with a large aspirational first-time buyer segment. This may help Chinese companies offset falling growth in their core market in coming years,” noted a senior industry sales executive.
GWM’s plans for its Indian operations buttress this observation. It has set aside a war chest of $1 billion (about Rs 7,000 crore) to fund its expansion into India. This will be done in a “phased manner, covering manufacturing plant, vehicle research and development, production of power batteries and electric drives, vehicle and component manufacturing,” it said, adding the move will generate 3,000 direct jobs.
“India has become one of the world’s fastest-growing major economy, and the auto market is promising, making it a preferred investment destination for most auto companies,” said Hardeep Singh Brar, director (sales and marketing), GWM India.
Chinese companies are also leading their India forays with SUVs, experts pointing out that the segment is the one, which is seeing the most traction in the Indian market. While GWM is likely to lead with the launch of its Haval brand of SUVs, other Chinese players are also likely to do the same.
Sources say that Changan’s first model is likely to be a new version of its popular 4.7 meter-long SUV CS 75 Plus. As for FAW Group’s Haima brand, its first India product is set to be mid-size SUV Haima 8S, which was first unveiled in 2019.
These entries are likely to make the SUV segment one of the most competitive in the sector, since all major Indian manufacturers have launched their own SUV bets over the past year: like Maruti Suzuki’s Vittara Brezza, Tata’s Harrier and Mahindra’s XUV500.
GWM’s plans for India operations
The company has set aside a warchest of $1 billion (around RS 7,000 crore) to fund its expansion into India. This will be done in a “phased manner, covering manufacturing plant, vehicle R&D, production of power batteries and electric drives, vehicle and component manufacturing,” it said