Sanand Nano plant to be on stream by March: Tata Motors

Tata Motors Ltd ysterday said that it will start trial production of its Nano mini - the world's cheapest car - at its Sanand plant in Gujarat in the January-March quarter.

"Currently at the Uttarakhand (Pantnagar) plant, we are making 3,000-4,000 Nano cars per month. We should reach full-scale production at Sanand in six to eight months from now," P M Telang, Tata Motors managing director in charge of India, told reporters on the sidelines of an industry conference in New Delhi.

The company had said earlier its new Nano factory will have an initial capacity of 250,000 cars a year. This can be ramped up to 350,000 cars a year at a later date.

The Nano has a 624 cc petrol engine, measures just over three meters in length, and is being sold in three versions. The base model of the car costs Rs1,23,360 at showrooms in New Delhi. The the top-end model - costing Rs172,360 - has features such as air-conditioning, front power windows and rear wiper.

Telang said the company expects truck and bus sales in the January-March quarter to grow as customers are likely to advance purchase decisions. India will adopt new emission norms from 1 April next year, which will likely push up vehicle prices. "Customers will try to save money by buying vehicles before April," Telang said.

"We are still cautiously optimistic on sales front. Though there will be incremental volume in the fourth quarter (ending March 31), it should not be considered as a revival in commercial vehicle sales," he said.