GM’s Stefan Jacoby calls for increased government support to make India an auto hub

Stefan Jacoby, GM executive vice-president & president, GM International, addressed a gathering of captains of industry from the global automotive space, Indian ministers and industry captains at SIAM’s 54th Annual Convention 2014 held in New Delhi on 12 September, 2014.
Speaking on the topic ‘Auto Industry and its Economic Linkages’, Jacoby was joined by other automotive leaders such as Fumihiko Ike, chairman of JAMA (Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association) and chairman of Honda Motor Co Japan apart from Ravi Pisharody, executive director – Commercial Vehicles Business Unit, Tata Motors and Kenichi Ayukawa, managing director and CEO, Maruti Suzuki India.
Jacoby stressed on the need for increased support from the government for India to build a globally competitive automotive industry and become a centre of vehicle production. “To realize the full potential of the industry, we encourage the government to reform overall central and state taxation policies in a timely manner,” Jacoby said.
“We would also like the government to address the need for flexible labour reforms, especially in manufacturing. This is one of the areas in which India lags behind other industrialized economies,” he added.

A day earlier, General Motors CEO Mary Barra who was a three-day fact-finding visit to India, where she met with Indian prime minister Narendra Modi and key stakeholders throughout the country, had said: “India represents a great opportunity for Chevrolet. With a relatively small vehicle population and rapidly growing, young middle class, India is expected to become one of the world’s three largest markets by 2020.

“GM is working to better understand the Indian market so we can give Indian customers what they deserve – safe, high-quality Chevrolet vehicles with exceptional designs that exceed expectations.”

GM has invested about $1 billion in India to date. Its Talegaon and Halol facilities can produce more than 280,000 vehicles per year. The GM Technical Center-India is carrying out local and global engineering projects, and GM India’s growing lineup of Chevrolet models is sold through the company’s nationwide dealer network.

During a visit to the Talegaon manufacturing facility in Pune, Barra participated in the celebration of the production of the first Chevrolet vehicle for export. Vehicles initially will be exported to Chile starting later this year.

Meeting with several of GM India’s top suppliers in Pune, Barra discussed opportunities for global sourcing and improved partnerships as GM continues to localize its supply base and make greater use of products manufactured in India.