Maruti to spend Rs17bn on Manesar expansion

Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. said that it will invest about Rs17bn for the proposed capacity expansion at its Manesar plant by 2.5 lakh units annually. This initiative will help the company scale up the Manesar plant's capacity from 300,000 units per annum to 550,000 units per annum over the next two years. Maruti Suzuki's present production facilities are located at Gurgaon with a capacity of 7 lakh (0.7 million) units and Manesar with capacity of 3 lakh (0.3 million) units. Maruti Suzuki also said that it will invest around Rs12.5bn to double its K-series engine manufacturing capacity in the next 2-3 years. The country's largest car maker currently makes 250,000 K-series engines at its Gurgaon plant annually. "We will invest 50 billion yen (around Rs25bn) in our R&D center and engine capacity expansion. It is likely to be equally divided into both," a company spokesperson said. Maruti Suzuki currently makes a total of one million engines (petrol, diesel and K-series petrol) at its Gurgaon facility. Maruti Suzuki said that it has become the first automobile company in India to produce one million (10 lakh) cars in a single financial year. The one millionth car manufactured by Maruti Suzuki in the fiscal year 2009-10, a glistening red Maruti Suzuki Swift, was rolled out on March 23 from the company's Manesar plant. In FY10, Maruti Suzuki has sold 923,242 units (791,260 in domestic market and 131,982 exports)