Benelli Hyderabad assembly unit ready

Three models- TNT 300, 302R and 600i assembled at its newly readied facility at Gundlapochampally near Medchal, will be launched.

Hyderabad: Adishwar Auto Ride India, which is the exclusive distributor for Benelli superbikes, will reintroduce Benelli bikes in the country from December. Three models- TNT 300, 302R and 600i assembled at its newly readied facility at Gundlapochampally near Medchal, will be launched. Production and dispatch of these bikes will start in the first week of December and deliveries will begin in the second week, said Benelli India MD Vikas Jhabakh.

These vehicles will be priced Rs 3.5 lakh, Rs 3.7 lakh and Rs 6.2 lakh respectively.

Adishwar is the exclusive distributor and has the rights to assemble the super bikers. The assembly facility, which has seen an investment of Rs 20 crore, has a capacity to make 7,000 units a year. It is hoping to sell 3,000 units in a year.

After the initial launch with three models, the company has plans to bring another 12 models by the end of 2020, he said adding that TRK (500 cc) will be launched next year. The company, which has 15 dealers across the country, said will add another 25 across India by March 2019. It will offer a five years of unlimited warranty.

The bikes will be imported as completely knocked down (CKDs) units and then will be assembled at Hyderabad. Earlier, these bikes were imported as completely build units, attracting a high import duty upto 100 per cent. However, with CKDs the import duty ranges from 15 to 30 per cent, depending on the kit. In all, Benell, before starting the assembly in Hyderabad, has sold 5,650 units in India.

Localization

In the phase 2 of its operations, Benelli will look to set up a manufacturing unit here. It is now asked a couple of consultants to suggest the best places for setting up the unit. Benelli will infuse equity for the unit. Among other places, it is studying Telangana, Chennai, Pune and other cities. “Telangana has been supportive. The State is among the possible locations for a manufacturing unit,” said Jhabakh.

It will look to increase the localization content in the bikes up to 30 per cent. It is in talks with multiple manufacturers on this but a decision will be after conducting various tests to meet the international standards. It will now look to cater to the domestic demand only but once the manufacturing unit is ready, it will make India has an export hub. It also plans India-specific designs keeping in view the road conditions as well as price. The super bike segment is growing at 25 per cent, he said.

Source: telanganatoday.com