New Delhi: Tata Motors, India’s biggest commercial vehicle maker, is in talks to buy Japanese conglomerate Sumitomo’s majority stake in Indian truck and bus maker Swaraj Mazda, Economic Times newspaper reported on Thursday.
The report comes as Tata aims to boost its position in the light commercial vehicle market, which is set to see the entry of new players such as General Motors and its Chinese partner SAIC.
The deal under which Tata would acquire Sumitomo’s 53.5% stake in Swaraj Mazda could be worth up to $54 million, the newspaper said.
A Tata Motors spokesman called the report ‘speculation’.
US auto giant GM and China’s SAIC last week said that they were forming a new alliance focused on India that will sell small cars and light trucks in the country’s fast-growing vehicle market.
India’s light commercial vehicle market is growing at 40% a year while new car sales in the country rose 61% year on year in November.
The Economic Times said that the acquisition of a majority stake in Swaraj Mazda would also provide Tata Motors access to technology from Japan’s Isuzu for commercial vehicle and buses.
Isuzu holds a 1.99% stake in Swaraj Mazda.
Tata Motors, India’s third-largest car manufacturer, recently acquired Spain’s Hispano Carrocera, a global leader in bus and coach making.
