Mahindra & Mahindra, one of India’s largest sports utility vehicle manufacturers, aims to double its capacity in the wake of surging demand.
M&M Group Chief Executive Officer Anish Shah told Motilal Oswal Financial Services at a recent investor conference that it is focused on meeting the strong demand in its SUV portfolio and will soon announce the roadmap for the doubling of the capacity.
The company's automotive division has an annual production capacity of 455,570 units, as per the latest annual report.
M&M has become one of the most talked about brands in the fast-growing SUV segment in India’s passenger car market. In August, the company recorded its highest ever monthly SUV volume of 29,516 units, up 87 percent from the same month a year ago.
In the current financial year, the company’s utility vehicles have registered a sales volume growth of 68 percent on a year-on-year basis. The bedrock of this success has been laid by the popularity of Mahindra XUV400, new remodeled version of Scorpio and the Thar, said analysts.
While M&M is focused on capturing as much of the demand as possible, the recent push towards electric vehicles may force to relook its plans to double capacity for internal combustion engine-based cars, said Motilal Oswal Financial in its note.
On the EV business, M&M recently has laid the roadmap for an ambitious foray into the space where Tata Motors is a dominant player.
“It expects to regain its leadership in EVs, driven by the InGlo platform, which will deliver five electric SUVs under ‘Mahindra Born electric vision’ with critical components coming from VW (Volkswagen),” Motilal Oswal Financial said.
Shah said that it expects EVs to account for 20-30 percent of its total SUV volumes by 2026-27, which would imply annual production of close to 200,000 units on current capacity.
“The penetration is expected to be driven by a wide product portfolio, and improving charging infra/time. It doesn’t expect EVs profit pool to be materially different from that of ICE, as it enjoys lower GST, PLI benefits, etc.” Motilal Oswal Financial noted.
As part of its vision to move away from focusing on reducing losses in the non-core businesses and maintaining capital allocation discipline for the last two years to driving growth in its core businesses, M&M is also looking to improve its market share in the farm equipment business.
The company has market share of around 6 percent in the farm equipment space but is looking to bring it on par with its market share in the tractor market, which could result in a 10-fold growth in revenues from the segment.
M&M also looks to drive valuations of some of the growth gems in its group business towards $1 billion in the coming years, including Mahindra Logistics and Mahindra Susten.
At 11:13am, shares of Mahindra & Mahindra were up 1.3 percent at Rs 1,305.5 on the National Stock Exchange.
Disclaimer: The views and investment tips expressed by investment experts on Moneycontrol.com are their own and not those of the website or its management. Moneycontrol.com advises users to check with certified experts before taking any investment decisions.
Discover the latest Business News, Sensex, and Nifty updates. Obtain Personal Finance insights, tax queries, and expert opinions on Moneycontrol or download the Moneycontrol App to stay updated!
