General Motors (GM) plans to enter the utility vehicle market in India by early next year with a van in the same segment as the recently launched Tata Venture and the Maruti Suzuki Eeco.

Though the seating capacity is expected to be the same as the Eeco, which is sold as a five or a seven-seater, the price positioning could be slightly more premium.

“The van, or utility vehicle, will be in the same segment of the Tata Venture and Maruti Suzuki Eeco, though pricing is likely to be a bit higher. We would like to create some product differentiation in the segment by giving more features,” Mr P. Balendran, Vice-President of GM India, told Business Line .

He added that the engine sourcing agreement for the LCVs has also been formalised, though he did not mention the supplier.

The Tata Venture is priced at Rs 4-5 lakh, while the Maruti Eeco is a little cheaper at Rs 2.8-3.8 lakh.

Borne out of the light commercial vehicle (LCV) platform developed with Chinese partner Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC), the Chevrolet branded van will be the first product in the new range scheduled to come out of its Halol plant. SAIC holds a 50 per cent share in GM India.

The second product from the same platform, which will be launched around the same time, will be a one tonne pick-up truck competing with four-wheeled LCVs such as the Tata Ace and the Mahindra Maxximo. Other players such as Ashok Leyland, Bajaj and Piaggio are also believed to be working on new models for the segment, which has grown on the high demand from short distance and inter-city goods transport.

The US-headquartered GM is investing Rs 700 crore at its Halol plant — out of the Rs 1,400 crore investment plans for 2011-12. These funds will be used to convert Halol into a global hub for LCV manufacturing, while also expand production capacity to 1.05 lakh units a year. The current manufacturing capacity of the plant is around 85,000 a year. The company also has a car plant in Talegaon with a 1.4-lakh-unit annual capacity.

> roudra.b@thehindu.co.in

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