Volvo Auto India said the takeover of its parent Volvo by China’s Geely won’t affect its plans for India. The company also said there was no talk about the likelihood of the Chinese carmaker coming to India through it.
Paul de Voijs, Volvo Auto India Managing Director said, “After what happened on Sunday, Volvo will continue to be an independent division of Geely, headquartered in Sweden. We will directly report to Volvo in Sweden”. Zhejiang Geely Holding Group took over the US car giant Ford Motor’s sick Swedish car unit Volvo Cars for a stunning $1.8 billion.
In India, Volvo Cars was operating independently of Ford from last October and the fully-owned subsidiary was renamed as Volvo Auto India Pvt Ltd. Volvo Cars decided by itself about its India entry in 2007, ensued by introduction of its models and business growth.
He said, “We will continue with our own plans that have been announced earlier, which includes new products and network expansion.” This year, the company intends to launch sports utility vehicle XC60 and sedan S60 in the Indian market.
The company is also wants to boost its dealer network in the country to 12 by this year end from the current 7.