Ford to invest $142 m in India

 Global automobile giant Ford, on Wednesday, announced that the company will invest $142 million (Rs 760 crore) at its Chennai plant in India to start manufacturing  of its new compact SUV, ‘EcoSport’, Ford India President and Managing Director Michael Boneham said.

Ford India will roll out EcoSport in the market later this year, which will make its global debut in India and will be sold in 100 markets around the world.

Speaking about the new SUV, Ford Asia-Pacific President Joe Hinrichs said: “We have promised to bring more than 50 new vehicles and powertrains in Asia and Africa by mid-decade and the all new EcoSport continues to deliver on that pledge.”

The company said that the SUV will be powered by a one-litre EcoBoost engine, delivering power and performance that will rival a traditional 1.6 petrol engine. Ford President and CEO Alan Mulally said, “This is the first compact SUV and we are launching it right at the heart of the compact vehicles market.” He said the global market is still robust and expects about 5 per cent growth consecutively in the next two years. “The Asia-Pacific market has slowed down a little bit, but there is tremendous growth potential,” Mullaly added.  Ford is also setting up a second plant at Sanand, in Gujarat, with an investment of $1 billion.