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Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM) has seen a 36 per cent growth in sales in the first six months of the calendar year and a 33 per cent growth during the first quarter on a year-on-year basis.
The company has ramped up production by 32 per cent — an increase of up to 33,000 vehicles — each year at its Bidadi plant.
The strong demand momentum has continued from last year, which saw a sale of 1,74,000 vehicles.
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“The growth last financial year was 41 per cent year-on-year, making it the best year for the company. The first six months this year have given us the confidence that the numbers will be better than last year. We are hopeful to create another record,” Vikram Gulati, Country Head and Executive Vice-President, Corporate Affairs and Governance, told Businessline.
Supply chain issue
To decrease the waiting period and address the supply chain issue, Toyota Kirloskar Motor has expanded its capacity and operating three shifts since May at its plant in Karnataka.
“There was a temporary period wherein we stopped booking for the Innova Crysta diesel and then resumed it. There was a supply issue that resulted in high waiting periods. We introduced a third shift at the plant which produces Innova, Hycross and Crysta. This has helped us ramp up production. We are continuously working to address the issue internally with better efficiency, address the supply issue, and meet the demand much faster,” said Gulati.
Growth in hybrids
The company is seeing a strong demand growth for its hybrid vehicles.
“The response from hybrids is positive, as this is also a segment where consumers are less sensitive to the vehicle prices. The choice of hybrid is better than internal combustion engine (ICE); ICE vehicles do have traction but are more towards hybrid. However, mass electrification is needed; higher tax in rupee terms for hybrid vs ICE does not make good logic for a consumer,” added Gulati.
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