Tata Motors launches 4 pick-up trucks in one day, plans to boost portfolio

"There is huge headroom for growth in LCVs and pick-up trucks thanks to the boom in e-commerce, hub-and-spoke models, and consumption in general,” said Girish Wagh, Executive Director, Tata Motors, in a chat with CNBC-TV18.

"Our pick-up truck launches could make Tata Motors’ LCV portfolio more comprehensive and see us hit our lowest total-cost-of-ownership (TCO) and turnaround time," he added.

There’s no denying that the launches will see Tata Motors see better growth in the small and large pick-up truck segment. After all, these launches come on the back of the company registering 100,000 sales of the Tata Intra in 30 months since the launch — Wagh says the next 100,000 should come sooner — and a 26 percent year-on-year growth over a low-base COVID period.

"We expect to grow in double digits this fiscal,” said Wagh, "At present, the Tata Ace occupies 55 percent of Tata Motors’ LCV volumes, while the Intra and Yodha account for 33 percent and 25 percent of our portfolio respectively."

He added: "We now believe that the Tata Intra V20 (biofuel) will occupy more than one-third of LCV volumes, while the Yodha will account for 25 percent of our overall LCV portfolio.” These projections are not out of place given that Tata Motors is reportedly investing Rs 2,000 crore per year towards developing new capabilities in its CV portfolio.

There’s no denying that a number of these projections could well be undone by rocky economic circumstances, especially with the threat of recession approaching. "We could see sales volumes in commercial vehicles impacted by interest rates and fuel prices, although there is some softening in fuel prices,” Wagh admitted, “However we also have tailwinds like the increasing consumption and the Indian Government’s focus on infrastructure, which could well outdo these headwinds."

What will assure substantial growth, especially in terms of alternate fuel-equipped models is the focus on energy transition. Several commercial vehicle majors are looking at CNG as a competent alternate fuel to satisfy the requirements of this transition. “We plan on strengthening our portfolio across the board through alternate fuels like CNG, and the Intra V20 is an example of that," said Wagh.

And while Tata Motors expects nearly one-third of its LCV sales to be accounted for the Intra V20, Wagh admits that the bulk of the demand will come from urban and semi-urban areas, before moving on to rural clusters. In so far as electrification is concerned, the company expects buses and small commercial vehicles (SCVs) to command a bulk of the demand. "We believe that overall EV penetration in the country will reach double-digits in buses and SCVs," said Wagh.​