India’s Ashok Leyland to open plants in Africa, expand UAE facility
Manufacturer looking to invest about $15m in new facilities in Africa
Ashok Leyland, India’s second largest commercial vehicle manufacturer, plans to set up two assembly plants in Africa and double capacity at its facility in Ras al Khaimah, UAE.
The company is set to invest around INR100 crore (about $15m) in the African plants as part of its global expansion plans.
“We are looking at a couple of smaller assembly plants in Africa. We haven’t identified the location yet. Besides, we are also looking to double the capacity of our Ras al-Khaimah facility,” Ashok Leyland managing director Vinod K Dasari told the Press Trust of India (PTI) at the Auto Expo 2016 in New Delhi.
Elaborating on the plan to expand production in the UAE, he said: “We were doing four units a day, which has been increased to 12. By the end of 2016, we will double it to 24 units a day.”
2015 has been good for Ashok Leyland, Dasari said, noting that he hoped the momentum would continue into 2016.
The company’s showcase at the expo included a roll-over compliant school bus and a Euro 6-compliant truck among others. In addition, the manufacturer unveiled the Hybus, which it claims is India’s first non-plugin hybrid bus.
