Tata Motors is all set to ramp up its production as the company expects its growth momentum to continue this year. Further, it anticipates supply-side issues to improve, helping it roll out more units to cater to the enhanced demand.

The Mumbai-based automaker, which sells models like Punch, Nexon, and Harrier, saw its total passenger vehicle dispatches to dealerships rise by 44 percent to 99,002 units in the third quarter (October-December 2021) as compared with 68,806 units in the same period of the previous year.

Last month, it reported a 50 percent jump in total passenger vehicle sales to 35,299 units as compared with 23,545 units in December 2020. “We believe so, because every model in our portfolio, we have now seven products and each model has contributed to this growth,” Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles Managing Director Shailesh Chandra said in an interaction.

When asked if the company is confident about sustaining its growth momentum in 2022 as well after ending the last year on a high, he said, “There have been supplying side issues which have not allowed us to fully unleash the demand potential that we have for our range of cars. Therefore, I’m confident that we would continue to grow as well (when) the supply side situation improves,” Chandra noted.

He said the company is coming with more options in the mass segment to expand its customer base. The company’s debut in the entry-level SUV segment with Punch last year is one fine example of bringing in models in growing segments. “We will keep introducing new models in the new growth areas. We have been doing that over the last two years and we are continuing to do that as you would have seen that our intensity of launches was possibly one of the best in the industry,” Chandra added.

The company has rolled out SUVs, CNG trims and continues to drive in electric vehicles, he said. “Every year there will be some different kinds of exciting versions of our current models or some kind of exciting intervention which connects with new-age customers. This is the set of things which we will continue to do,” he said. Besides, the company would continue to work in terms of mitigating the risks, which are arising out of the semiconductor crisis, and also focus on cost reduction efforts inside the organization given the impact the commodity pricing has had on the overall financials of the company, he stated.

Asked if the company is witnessing some improvement in the semiconductor supplies, he said: “It has not normalized but the outlook for this quarter is looking better as compared to what it was in the last quarter. To this extent, I would say 10 to 15 percent better as compared to what we have been witnessing in the last two quarters.”

Chandra noted that the supply side challenges would continue for the next few months and the intensity of the disruption is expected to moderate a bit. “Demand-side remains strong but there is a slight slowdown as compared to what we were seeing in the last quarter possibly because of the Omicron spread and customers not willing to come out for test drives and these kinds of things,” he stated.

He said though some moderation in sales is expected in the short term, overall the demand remains very strong both in terms of a pipeline of bookings. “We now have some idea of how Omicron is playing out. We were concerned at the start of the month as we were not very sure in terms of when the peak will reach and what extent of disruption that will create but frankly, we have not seen any major disruption,” he stated.

There are certain logistics challenges but nothing as compared to what the industry witnessed during the earlier waves, Chandra said. On the EV segment, he said the company currently is in the demand discovery phase. “There is a strong pipeline of bookings that we have. There’s a long waiting list, which is very evident. If you go to any showroom there is a slightly longer waiting list for EVs, which means that the pipeline is strong but at the same time every quarter we are also significantly ramping up the supplies,” he said.

In the first quarter of the current fiscal year, the company dispatched about 1,700 vehicles, in the second quarter about 2,700 units, and in the third quarter over 5,500 vehicles, Chandra noted. “We continue to see how we can further increase the supply so that we can bring down the waiting list and service this demand which is growing at a very fast pace,” he added.