India’s manufacturing PMI is up to 58.9, illustrating the strong rebound in manufacturing. The YOY Industrial Production Index is in the positive column for the first time since the beginning of the pandemic. The Union Cabinet approved a $20 billion Production Linked Incentive scheme to boost their manufacturing capabilities, attract investment, and enhance exports in their continued drive to make India a dominant global manufacturing hub. Mercedes and Jaguar will battle for the local luxury electric SUV market, while cellphones, tractors, and motorcycles see exciting developments. For more industry intel and tidbits, read on.
Jaguar will have its India launch of the I-Pace all-electric SUV in March 2021 to compete with Mercedes who recently launched their EQC all-electric SUV.
The government has invited state-owned and private-sector companies to build and operate EV charging infrastructure at the existing gas stations in the cities as well as on the state highways.
The government approved an additional $20 billion Production Linked Incentive (PLI) package for 10 different manufacturing sectors. Automotive will receive the largest portion of incentives, followed by advanced cell battery manufacturing. Pharma, food processing, textiles, telecom and networking, speciality steel, white goods, solar, and the electronics sectors are also allocated incentives.
Industry 4.0 is on the rise, and a survey showed that companies are focusing to hire employees who have AI and automation knowledge and skills.
Samsung will invest $700 million to enhance production in their smartphone display facility in Noida near Delhi.
The Tata Group is investing $720 million to set up a phone component manufacturing plant in Hosur near Bangalore.
The board of Pegatron, Apple’s second largest contract manufacturer, approved an initial investment of $150 million to build facilities in India. Production is likely to start by the end of 2021.
As part of Harley-Davidson’s restructuring of its sales channels in key global markets, it has signed an agreement with India’s Hero Motocorp. Hero will be responsible for the sales and service of Harley products in India and will also manufacture some premium motorcycles to be sold under the Harley-Davidson brand name.
Escorts Agri Machinery is investing to enhance its tractor manufacturing capacity from the present 120,000 per year to 180,000.
Apollo Tyres will invest $370 million in 2021 to increase production capacity. It presently has four plants in India.
Public sector Coal India Ltd., the world’s biggest coal miner and India’s single largest greenhouse gas emitter, plans to invest $800 million over the next four years to build 3,000 megawatt solar projects in order to become a net-zero energy company by 2024.
Danfoss is investing $15 million to expand drive production in its Tamil Nadu facility.
For more information, contact Arun Mahajan (AMahajan@AMTonline.org)
