 "MG Motor")
MG Motor India is planning to divest a majority stake in its operations in the country. To this end, it is conducting discussions with potential Indian partners, a report published in Autocar Professional said. MG Motor India is a British brand, which is owned by China's largest car maker Shanghai Automotive.
The final announcement about the specifics of the divestment will be announced in 2023. Apart from this, MG Motor India is also considering listing its business on Indian stock exchanges, the report said.
MG's 3.0 Plan
The plan to divest its business is consistent with MG's 3.0 plan for the country which is scheduled between 2025 and 2028. The plan will need an investment of Rs 5,000 crore, which will be used to expand MG's production capacity by setting up another manufacturing plant in Halol, Gujarat.
The investment is expected to expand the company's present manufacturing capacity of 180,000 units to 300,000 units, Autocar Professional reported. As a part of its expansion plans, MG is likely to roll out four to five new vehicles.
All of these vehicles will feature an electric powertrain. These new electric vehicles will be manufactured at the second plant in Halol which is likely to generate 20,000 jobs, the report added.
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What is MG up to?
Elaborating on MG's roadmap for India, CEO Emeritus of MG Motor India, Rajeev Chaba said, "The plan is to Indianise the operation. The first step will be announced in 2023. We plan to dilute our shareholding, the majority to be owned by Indians in 2-4 years. We want to Indianise the board, management, shareholding, and supply chain. The majority stake in the coming years will be owned by an Indian partner."
In line with its vision statement, MG is taking steps to put Indians at the helm of affairs. Chaba was recently appointed the CEO Emeritus, earlier he was CEO.
Additionally, the company elevated Gaurav Gupta as the Deputy MD who will be in charge of revenues. Biju Balendran was appointed as Deputy MD who will oversee the cost and plant operations at MG, the report said.
Push towards clean energy technologies and manufacturing locally
In its press release, MG stressed its commitment to empowering India's journey towards becoming a manufacturing hub. Additionally, it emphasised MG's plans to invest in clean technologies. Besides supporting the shift to electric vehicles in the country, developing hydrogen fuel cells and cell manufacturing is vital to MG's roadmap for India.
MG also talked about bolstering local manufacturing of EV parts via joint ventures or in association with third-party manufacturers.
MG Motors 2.0 plan and its presence in India so far
At present, MG is executing its 2.0 plant. The plan is essentially an effort to boost MG's manufacturing capacity from its current 70,000 units to 120,000 units annually. The company plans to sell 80,000 to 100,000 units in 2023. In addition to that, the company wants to be net income positive by the end of the year.
MG entered the Indian market in September 2017 by taking charge of General Motors' old plant in Halol. The plant has acted as MG's manufacturing hub for the last four to five years. However, the old factory has its limitations and can not cater to MG's expansion plans. It is for this reason that MG is contemplating a second plant in India.
