Mahindra Sets Up Detroit’s First Automobile Plant In 25 Years
Mahindra’s first step to building a global manufacturing footprint.
Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. expanded its auto manufacturing footprint beyond India by opening a facility in Detroit, the first in the American auto hub in about a quarter of a century.
The facility, inaugurated by Mahindra Automotive North America southeast of Michigan yesterday, is part of a $230-million investment in the region that also includes a warehouse and logistics operation, and an existing prototype operation, the company said in a release on its website.
India’s largest utility vehicle maker will initially assemble cross-terrain vehicles for the U.S. market at the factory. It’s primarily targeted at those who drive off-roaders as a leisure activity, Pawan Goenka, M&M’s managing director, had said at an earnings press conference earlier this month. Mahindra has already established a strong foothold in the U.S. with its range of tractors.
Its plans for the U.S. market run deeper.
Off The Beaten Track
Anand Mahindra, the group chairman, hinted that on-road vehicles eventually may be branded by SsangYong Motor Co, especially in the electric and hybrid categories, and that it would draw on Pininfarina to design upper-end electric vehicles, Forbes reported. He spoke to reporters on the sidelines of the launch.
Both SsangYong and Pininfarina are subsidiaries of M&M.
Mahindra will invest another $600 million in the U.S. by 2020, it said in its release. Whether that investment will also go to the Detroit region was not immediately known.
Distinct From Its Plan For A Second Home Base
The company’s Detroit unit, at least as of now, doesn’t relate to its plan to set up a second home base of operations. In March this year, the company had said that it was scouting for a home away from home. Mahindra aims to create a manufacturing base overseas that is similar to its operations here to reduce its dependence on one market.
The plan is still at a nascent stage and the company is evaluating multiple potential geographies, Goenka said at the recent earnings conference.