Nissan-Micra

Amidst its global restructuring plan, Nissan Motor Company has kept its investment plans for India unchanged and the production of its first compact cars in the country will begin by next year. It is to be mentioned that the Indian arm of the Japanese automaker is establishing a Rs 4,500-crore car-manufacturing facility with Renault in Chennai, where it will be rolling out next-generation A-segment car- to be christened Micra or March. The Micra would be available in both petrol and diesel versions, with nearly two-third of its production earmarked for the overseas markets.

The company aims to have eight different products in its portfolio by 2012. The company has also envisaged exporting cars manufactured in the country in a completely built-up form. The 50:50 joint venture between Nissan and Renault at Oragadam near Chennai, will have a capacity to manufacture four lakh cars annually and Nissan will initially produce two lakh cars, which it then proposes to scale-up to manufacture up to three lakh cars in about four years time.

Nissan Motor India Private Limited (NMIPL), the wholly-owned Indian subsidiary of Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., Japan, on 18th October 2008, had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Ennore Port Limited (EPL) to export its vehicles to Europe through Ennore Port in Tamil Nadu by the second half of 2010. NMIPL will be the first automaker to utilize this eastern gateway port of India as an export base. The company has estimated its total exports to be approximately 110,000 units in the fiscal year 2011 and will subsequently be enhanced to 180,000 units in a phased manner. The Ennore port in north Chennai would have a dedicated jetty for exports of Nissan cars and the company hopes to export 2-2.5 lakh cars annually in 3-4 years and sell 90,000-1,00,000 units in the domestic market.

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