Ford India has sent its first shipment of 1,200 Figo models to South Africa. The 1.4-litre petrol and diesel versions of the previous generation European Fiesta-based model will reach dealers in the middle of this month.
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President and managing director Michael Boneham said: “In addition to being a sales chart topper, the Figo is the first small car to be produced and exported by Ford India and today’s consignment of 1,200 to South Africa is a new, exciting development for us.”
He added, “Given the rising demand worldwide for compact vehicles, we plan to accelerate our export strategy to not only enhance our business growth but also to further embellish India’s reputation as a major regional auto manufacturing hub.”
Boneham said, “Just as the Figo has taken the Indian market by storm, we are confident that it will have a similar impact in South Africa and we hope to export 5,000 vehicles to the country by the end of the year.”
Since launch in March, the Figo has attracted over 24,000 orders for Ford India. In June, the unit’s sales grew 267 to 7,269 units compared to 1,982 units in June 2009. The success was driven mainly by the popularity of the Figo.
The Figo shipment further extends an export relationship between Ford units in India and South Africa. In addition to diesel powertrains, the Indian Fiesta continues to be exported to South Africa. In June this year, Ford India also began exporting petrol engines to Thailand.
Ford plans to hire another 1,000 people for its Chennai facility by the end of this year.
Saying the biggest problem was “capacity” with demand for the vehicles picking up, Boneham said, “South Africa was an impatient customer (for us)… We have got over 5,000 units in orders (for Figo).”
Other export markets would be announced in coming weeks.
To meet domestic demand, the company yesterday started a second shift at its manufacturing facility in Maraimalai Nagar near Chennai.
“The Figo has a capacity of one lakh (100,000) units and with the addition of the second shift, it will go up to [140,000],” Boneham said.
Boneham also said the company will export 2,500 units of its 1.6 litre diesel engine to Thailand, mainly for the new generation mid-sized Fiesta sedan, within a month.
