Maruti Suzuki to invest Rs 35,000 crore to build new plant in Gujarat

Production at the plant is expected to begin in financial year 2029 and will add to the annual production capacity of 2.4 million vehicles for Maruti

Domestic automaker Maruti Suzuki will invest Rs 35,000 crore ($3.9 billion) in a plant it plans to set up in Gujarat, the state's government said on Saturday.

The plant will add production capacity of up to 1 million vehicles a year for the automaker as it expands manufacturing to meet rising demand in India, the world’s third-largest car market, and for exports, Gujarat said in a statement.

Production at the plant is expected to begin in financial year 2029 and will add to the annual production capacity of 2.4 million vehicles for Maruti, which is majority-owned by Japan's Suzuki Motor and is India's top carmaker by sales.

The company has an order backlog of about one and a half months for its entry-level models, its marketing and sales head, Partho Banerjee, said this month. The company said its sales to domestic dealers rose 37% in December to a record 178,646 units.

Maruti’s board of directors this week approved an initial investment of 49.6 billion rupees to acquire land for the plant.