Nissan plans to ramp up to three launches a year in India

Japanese carmaker Nissan is looking to launch at least two models annually and plans to increase it to three in three years, said Vincent Cobee, Corporate Vice-President of Nissan and Global Head of Datsun. Speaking to Business Today recently, he said the company targets to sell about 200,000 cars in India in the mid term.

"Brand reinforcement, geographical coverage and new product line-up are the immediate priorities of the company," he said. In the last decade, Nissan emerged as the biggest carmaker in China. In parellel, Renault established its base in Brazil. The focus of this decade is India and Russia, he added.

Cobee is positive about India. "Stable government, developmental policies and falling interest rates are positive signs for India. The government is pro-development. I like ambition and strong measures," he added. The Renault-Nissan alliance plant in Chennai has 4.8 lakh units per annum capacity. In February 2008, the alliance signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the government of Tamil Nadu to set up a plant at Oragadam near Chennai. The construction had been completed in a record 21 months.

"Focus and building the right foundation is important in our industry. It is a long lasting involvement," said Cobee. Nissan launched its compact multi purpose vehicle (MPV) Datsun GO+ in India a week ago, with prices starting at Rs 3.79 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi). Datsun GO+ is the second model in Datsun's India line up.

Since the global re-introduction of the Datsun brand, first in India in March 2014, followed by Indonesia, South Africa and Russia, 42,000 Datsun-badged cars have been sold. Of that, 31 per cent is from India where close to 13,000 Datsuns have been sold till December 2014. In the past year, Nissan has ramped up its network from 128 to 158 outlets.

It will be increased to 260 in 2016. The company wants to capture a market share of 10 per cent in India. In the April-December 2014 period, according to Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM), passenger vehicle sales were at 18,94,932 units, up 3.67 per cent from 18,27,866 units in the same period last fiscal. Nissan's total passenger vehicle sales stood at 35,042 units in this period as against 23,927 units last fiscal.