Stellantis has invested nearly ₹11,000 crore in India operations so far and will deploy additional capital in line with market demand, Managing Director and CEO Shailesh Hazela said, outlining the automaker’s long-term commitment to manufacturing, engineering and exports from the country.
“We have invested close to ₹11,000 crore in our journey in India, and we will keep investing as we go,” Hazela said. “For Stellantis, investments are not capex-driven; they are demand-driven. As soon as we have the requirement, we invest.”
Hazela said Stellantis built its India base well before expanding its product portfolio by strengthening engineering, sourcing and manufacturing capabilities. Additional investments will flow into new programs, capacity expansion and supplier tooling as required.
In October, Stellantis–which sells Citroën, Jeep and Maserati in India–reported domestic wholesale volumes of 1,426 units, up sharply from 717 units a year earlier. Its retail sales were 1,306 units, nearly flat compared with 1,298 units a year ago. The automaker has set an immediate target of reaching 2,000 monthly sales, followed by targets of 3,000 and 4,000 units.
To support this growth, the company is expanding its retail footprint. “When we launched the first C3, we were at 18 outlets. Today, we have 130 sales points for Citroën, 78 for Jeep, and around 75 service centres. Every month, we are adding 7-8 sales points,” Hazela said. Stellantis India aims to reach about 150 sales points by the end of FY26, using a flexible, frugal network model tailored to each market tier.
Export Expansion
In FY26, Stellantis India will target a major expansion of its India-led exports, driven by both factory output and India-based component suppliers. Hazela said exports from local suppliers alone are expected to touch nearly ₹10,000 crore by FY27, up from around ₹4,000 crore currently.
“We develop suppliers, nurture them, and make them capable,” he said. “Several suppliers already export directly to our warehouses in the US and Europe. That is the strength of India.”
The company is deepening localisation by leveraging its network of 138 suppliers, primarily concentrated across Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and the Delhi-NCR belt.
Stellantis currently operates three manufacturing plants in India–Ranjangaon (which supports the Tata Motors joint venture and produces Jeep models and powertrains), Thiruvallur (the production base for Citroën vehicles), and Hosur (the global export hub for engines and transmissions). These are supported by large R&D and software centres in Chennai, Pune, Hyderabad and Bengaluru.
Hosur—the Last ICE Plant
At the centre of Stellantis’ India strategy is its Hosur powertrain facility, which Hazela described as the company’s most future-proof internal combustion engine (ICE) plant.
The facility exports 95% of its engines and transmissions to global markets and has capacity to produce 300,000 engines and 350,000 transmissions annually. It accounts for 5 per cent of Stellantis’ global production.
“This could be the last plant standing for Stellantis ICE engine production,” Hazela said. “India has strength in manufacturing, and nobody can beat it, especially for components like engines and transmissions.”
Stellantis chose India as the base for its new global engine-transmission platform to ensure long-term cost competitiveness. “From day one it was clear that we were going to develop this platform where it can be sustained for years,” Hazela said.
The Hosur facility was conceptualised in 2017 with a mandate to serve both India and international markets from day one, Hazel said.