NEW DELHI, DEC 21: In a sudden volte-face, German auto major Volkswagen AG has decided to keep its options open for its proposed entry into India. The car major has decided that it would not pick up a domestic company as a partner for its project and go it alone, if and when it decides to set up a manufacturing base for launching the Skoda models in India.In an interview, Robert Buchelhofer member of the board of management, Volkswagen AG, said, "We have not made up our mind yet on whether we would come to India." "The decision would be taken in the next four to five months", he said. Buchelhofer's statements assume significance in the light of the fact that he is a director on the board of Volkswagen, which owns around 70 per cent equity of the Czech car manufacturer, Skoda Automobilova.Even after months of market surveys and research in India, the German auto major has not made up its mind on its entry plans as it feels that the 50 per cent indigenisation level as per the automobile policy is a difficult target to achieve, considering its stress on high quality standards. A high-profile team from Volkswagen headed by Buchelhofer met the Union finance minister P Chidambaram, industry minister Murasoli Maran and commerce minister, B B Ramaiah recently. "We were here on a fact-finding visit here and have sought clarifications from the Indian government on several aspects of the automobile policy. After the government sends us replies, Volkswagen will study the guidelines and take a final decision on the size as well as the site of the project." As far as the plant site is concerned, Buchelhofer said that Shendre has been short-listed among two other places."The final decision would also depend on which areas would be feasible to meet the demand of the two major markets in the country - Delhi and Mumbai," he said. The chief sales, marketing and financial officer Skoda, Detlef Wittig, said, "Volkswagen has plans to launch the latest models of the Felicia and Octavia. The latter is the most recent model which was introduced in Europe this year." The cars would be available in 1.3 litre petrol and 1.9 litre diesel versions and priced between Rs 4.5 lakh and Rs 6 lakh, Wittig said. The cost of the project would be around $250 million.The company is looking at a total production of 60,000 to 80,000 cars in the final stage.
