Suzuki Motors intends to build a new plant in India

TOKYO: Japan’s top mini car maker, Suzuki Motor Corp., is to build a new auto assembly plant near the Indian capital New Delhi in a bid to meet growing demand in the country, a newspaper reported on Sunday.

Maruti Suzuki India Ltd., a local subsidiary of Suzuki, plans to construct the new plant in Manesar near its assembly base with operation scheduled to begin in 2013, the Nikkei business daily said, quoting company sources.

The plant, its third in Manesar, will be built at a cost of 30 billion yen (356 million dollars) with an annual capacity of 250,000 vehicles, boosting Suzuki’s annual production in India to 1.7 million units, the daily said.

Suzuki, one of the earliest foreign entrants into India’s auto market, has built a dominant position there, boasting a market share of nearly 50 percent, the newspaper said.

Suzuki in 2007 launched an