Kia Motors’ Anantapur plant to hit full capacity by 2021, says senior VP

Anantapur: Kia Motors India’s Anantapur plant is expected to reach 100% capacity utilisation by 2021, a top official of the South Korean auto giant said on Thursday. The plant, that has an installed capacity of 3 lakh units per annum, is expected to run at full capacity once the company launches its fourth or fifth model, according to Kia Motors India vice-president and head of sales & marketing, Manohar Bhat.The company said it would launch a new model every six months.
In April 2017, Kia Motors had signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Andhra Pradesh government to build its first manufacturing facility in India. The construction of the facility was completed last year with trial productions starting in January 2019, following which it launched its first model, Seltos, in August.
Bhat said out that the company will be launching Carnival, its second model which will kick-start the category of “luxury” MPV (multi-purpose vehicle), in February next year. “It is a new segment that we will be creating with the launch of this model...it is bigger than Innova,” he said, adding that bookings for the vehicle will begin in January next year.
Bhat also hinted that the company is working on a model that is smaller than the Seltos. “We have enough hatchbacks in our portfolio...We have got good designs…Maybe we can look for one for the Indian market also..,” he said. Earlier reports had indicated that Kia will be rolling out a compact SUV after Carnival.
On localisation, Bhat said the company has already achieved over 80% localisation and this has enabled Kia to price the Seltos competitively in the highly price-sensitive Indian market. The auto giant sources from over 100 vendors across the country. Kia Motors has 265 touch-points and service centres in the country, which is expected to increase to 300 by March 2020.
The company, this week, had said that since its launch in August 2019, it had delivered over 40,600 Seltos’, making it the number four auto-maker in the country. The company has already received 86,840 bookings till date and to meet the demand, it has even started a second shift at its unit. Globally, about 3 million Kia vehicles are produced each year at 14 manufacturing and assembly operation units in five countries. The auto giant has over 51,000 employees worldwide and annual revenues of over $47 billion.