Kia Motor India has kicked off its next phase of expansion in India and is currently in the process of increasing the plant capacity to 4.3 lakh units. Already operating at close to 95-100 percent capacity, Kia expects the Seltos facelift to help further expand volumes in the domestic market as well as exports.

On the sidelines of the Seltos facelift unveil, Tae Jin Park, Kia India MD and CEO, told Autocar India that the additional capacity beyond 3.5 lakh units will come up by the middle of 2024. "The market growth is slowing down, we plan to grow by 10 percent in the current calendar year. We are hoping for the new Seltos to bring in increased volumes," said Park.

Seltos a crucial product for Kia India

The Seltos SUV, which accounts for more than half of Kia's sales in the country, had slipped to about 5,000 to 6,000 units in recent months amidst increasing competition. With the facelifted model, however, the company wants to take sales figures back to the five-digit mark or over 10,000 units. This will help Kia outpace the market which is slated to grow in single digits. The Seltos is so critical for Kia that one in every 10 model it sells globally comes from this nameplate. In India too, the SUV accounts for 33 percent of the overall segment. 

Top-down strategy for EV line-up in India

Park said the company is following a top-down strategy with EVs, and is also looking to localise the EV6 which is currently brought in as a full import. “We will start EV6 which is premium among EVs, and then next year, we also want to bring the EV9, which is really high (in the top end category) in the EV range. We are thinking and analysing how we can make the CKD for the EV6,” he concluded.

Kia 2.0 strategy announced for India

The company on Tuesday announced its new mid-term plan coined Kia 2.0 which envisages growing market share to 10 percent by 2028, and doubling the network to 600 touchpoints. The product excitement for the company will continue as Kia has announced plans of launching a new grounds-up compact EV in India including an electric MPV in the next few years. This will help it expand its addressable market and bring in incremental sales. 

- Ketan Thakkar and Hormazd Sorabjee