Tata Motors ramping up production across segments

NEW DELHI: Buoyed by best monthly domestic sales in over four years, Tata Motors is ramping up production across segments to cash in on the festive season demand as it continues with efforts to turn around the business, a top company official said.

Its domestic sales of 53,695 units in September were the highest since March 2013 when it had sold 69,160 units. Its passenger vehicles (PVs) sales of 17,286 units last month were also the highest since November 2011 of 23,540 units.

The domestic commercial vehicles (CVs) business, which saw the company's market share drop to 44.4 per cent in March this year, from a high of nearly 60 per cent five years ago, recorded an average growth of 25 per cent in July-September period this fiscal.

During this period, Tata Motors had embarked on turning around of its bleeding domestic business with the following 6-9 months being critical as against an earlier planned business transition to be achieved in the next 2-3 years.

"We are increasing our addressable market with our newly launched products in PVs and CVs. There is wider acceptance of the new SCR technology and we are ramping up production across segments," Tata Motors CEO & Managing Director Guenter Butschek told PTI.

Selective catalytic reduction (SCR) is an emissions control technology system used in diesel engines, which has helped the company meet BS IV norms.

Butschek further said that the reduction in prices of vehicles as result of GST and increased customer engagements are further adding to positive consumer sentiments.

On the ongoing turnaround programme, he said: "We are committed to turning around the business with renewed focus on topline growth, increasing market share, major cost reduction initiatives and efficiency enhancements..."

These measures, he said would "help us define our market position and more importantly, be a profitable company".

"As a testimony to these actions, our efforts in the second quarter have been encouraging," Butschek said.

On a standalone basis, Tata Motors had posted loss of Rs 467.05 crore for the June quarter of 2017-18 fiscal. It had registered a profit of Rs 25.75 crore in the same period of 2016-17.

In 2016-17, Tata Motors' standalone gross revenues were at Rs 49,100 crore, up 3.6 per cent from the previous year.

The loss after tax, on a standalone basis, was Rs 2,480 crore compared to Rs 62 crore in the previous year.

Butschek said the CV business, which is the company's backbone has witnessed "phenomenal segment-wise performance" leading to an overall domestic sales growth of 25 per cent.

"We also continue to maintain the growth momentum in passenger vehicles and have recorded the highest sales in passenger vehicles in the last five years. We are confident that this momentum continues in the festive season," he added.