Tata Motors plans Korean route to Pakistan

Tata Motors is planning to export passenger and commercial vehicles to Pakistan through its South Korean subsidiary Tata Daewoo Commercial Vehicle Company Ltd.

"We are seriously looking at launching Tata's commercial and passenger vehicles in Pakistan. One of the options will be to export our vehicles through our South Korean subsidiary. If the right conditions are met, we will also like to manufacture vehicles in Pakistan some day," said the company's newly-appointed managing director Ravi Kant.

In the current financial year, Tata Daewoo has plans to launch medium and commercial vehicles in South Korea.

Increasing trade relations between India and Pakistan is expected to indirectly ramp up the demand for commercial vehicles like trucks and tempos.

Tata Motors is planning to accelerate growth by tapping new export markets at a time when the medium-heavy commercial vehicle market in the country is moving in a flat pace. At present, exports contribute to about 17 per cent of the total consolidated sales.

"By the end of this financial year, we would like the exports to contribute 20 per cent to our total consolidated sales. The company is looking at emerging markets in Africa (Ghana, Ivory Coast and Senegal), Russia and East European countries for exports of our buses and trucks," said Praveen P Kadle, executive director, finance and corporate affairs, Tata Motors.

The company has a dominant presence in South Africa in the commercial vehicles segment. "We are the number two there in the light commercial vehicle segment, the pick up variety, with a market share of 18 per cent," said Kant.

In the domestic market, Tata Motors is planning to enter the used-car finance segment. The company will launch Novus trucks this financial year. These trucks, with over 25 tonnage capacity, have been developed by Tata Daewoo in South Korea.

"The company will launch a series of vehicles equipped with its common rail diesel engines in the next 12 months," said V Sumantran, executive director, Tata Motors.

Tata Motors will launch Ace, a mini truck, in the northern states in the next few months. It has already launched Ace in Mahrashtra and all southern states in May this year.