Date:08/05/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/05/08/stories/2008050855751800.htm

Business

Fiat to source more auto parts

Special Correspondent

Plans to launch CNG variant of Palio; in talks with vendors

Proposes to roll out a slew of cars in a year
Unveiling of Linea planned in September

NEW DELHI: Working for a larger car market share and stepping up sourcing of auto parts from India, Italian automobile manufacturer Fiat unfolded its plans to source auto parts worth at least 250 million euro (about Rs. 1,595 crore) from the country by 2010 besides launching the CNG variant of its bread and butter model Palio and rolling out some more cars in the coming 12 months. At present, it is sourcing parts worth 30 million euro from India.

“We will source auto parts worth a minimum of 250 million euro from India by 2010,” Fiat Group purchasing s.r.l. CEO, Gianni Coda, told reporters here on Wednesday.

Observing that they are already talking to Indian vendors who would need to invest and upgrade their facilities to meet their demand, he said a team of 40 people was busy identifying the vendors for supplying parts for the company’s auto manufacturing plants at Europe, Brazil and North America.

The sourcing of parts from India would give the company two-fold advantage; parts would be about 10-15 per cent cheaper and the company would be able to broadbase its global market for sourcing.

At present, Fiat buys about 8 billion euro worth of auto parts from markets like Eastern Europe, Northern Africa, South America, India and China and has plans to enhance the purchases to 9.5 billion euro by 2010 from these markets.

Fiat India President and CEO, Rajeev Kapoor, said, “We will launch the CNG variant of the Palio by early next year” besides rolling out with a slew of car launches in a year, starting with introduction of ‘500’ the coming month. Palio is now available in both petrol and diesel variants.

While the company is proposing to unveil ‘Linea’ in September, ‘Grande Punto’ is expected to be rolled out early next year.

The ‘Grande Punto’ would come with a “price differential” than the existing cars in its segment since it is a bigger car than others in its segment, Mr. Kapoor said but refused to share details about the pricing of the car.

Other cars in that segment now are: Maruti’s Swift, Hyundai’s Getz and GM’s U-VA. The base model of Swift is around Rs. 4 lakh ex-showroom Delhi. Even when ‘500’ would be imported as completely built units from Italy, ‘Linea’ and ‘Grande Punto’ would be manufactured in the company’s Ranjangaon facility in Maharashtra.