Aiming for the top spot in the domestic two-wheeler market, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India (HMSI) will invest Rs 920 crore to add a fourth production line at its Vithalapur plant in Gujarat, the company said on Thursday.
The announcement was made during an event celebrating HMSI’s global milestone of 500 million two-wheelers, held at the Vithalapur facility near Ahmedabad.
HMSI, currently the second-largest two-wheeler manufacturer with a domestic market share of around 27%, trails Hero MotoCorp by only a few hundred thousand units. Since their split in 2011, Hero MotoCorp has maintained dominance in motorcycle sales, especially in rural markets with models like the Splendor. Meanwhile, HMSI continues to lead the scooter segment, with the Activa commanding over 60% market share.
With its investment in the motorcycle line, HMSI aims to challenge Hero on its own turf. The new line, with an annual production capacity of 650,000 units, will raise the total capacity of its fourth plant to 2.61 million units, making it HMSI’s largest motorcycle assembly plant globally. The Japanese automaker stated that the new line will create 1,800 jobs and is expected to be operational by the first half of 2027. Currently, the plant manufactures only scooters.
“With the investment in our fourth line, HMSI will continue to deliver attractive products and services to its customers around the world who have higher expectations and trust in the company, and further solidify its Indian motorcycle business,” said Tsutsumu Otani, President and CEO, HMSI.
HMSI currently operates four manufacturing facilities: Manesar in Haryana with a capacity of 38,000 units, Tapukara in Rajasthan with 1.3 million units, Narasipura in Karnataka with 2.5 million units, and Vithalapur in Gujarat with 1.96 million units. Collectively, these plants have a total production capacity of 6.14 million units. With the upcoming expansion, HMSI’s total production capacity is set to increase to approximately 7 million units by 2027.
Honda is also setting up a new plant dedicated to electric vehicles within the premises of its existing facility. The plant is expected to become operational by 2028. The Japanese automaker is positioning India as an export base for global markets and plans to launch at least one electric model globally every year.
HMSI’s CEO, Tsutsumu Otani, emphasised the investment’s role in supporting India’s growing market and expanding exports to over 62 countries, including Central and South America.
(The correspondent was in Vithalapur at the invitation of HMSI)
