Ford is returning to India, expresses intent to restart its Tamil Nadu plant for exports

• Ford is all set to make a return to India, with eyes on the international market.
• The company plans on repurposing its Chennai plant to manufacture vehicles for export.
• The company has submitted a letter of intent to the Tamil Nadu government.

After several reports about its return to India, popular American automaker Ford has expressed its intent to restart operations at its plant in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. Ford is well known for its popular SUVs such as the Endeavour and EcoSport.

Ford had exited the Indian market in 2021 due to declining sales. The company, which had two plants in the country had sold one to Indian automaker Tata Motors and planned a shutdown of the second plant. However, it could not wind down its vehicle and engine manufacturing in Chennai by the targeted timeline of the second quarter of 2022.

The company on Friday submitted a letter of intent to the Tamil Nadu government, confirming its intention to utilise the Chennai plant for manufacturing for exports.

"This step aims to underscore our ongoing commitment to India as we intend to leverage the manufacturing expertise available in Tamil Nadu to serve new global markets," Ford International Markets Group President Kay Hart said.

“We are grateful for the ongoing support from the Tamil Nadu Government as we explored different options for the Chennai plant,” Hart added.

The company said the strategic move will see the facility repurposed to focus on manufacturing for export to global markets, as part of the company's Ford+ growth plan.

“Ford currently employs 12,000 individuals in Global Business Operations in Tamil Nadu, a number expected to grow by 2,500 to 3,000 jobs within the next three years”, it added. "Combined with the engine manufacturing operations in Sanand, India represents Ford's second-largest salaried workforce worldwide," the company said.

The company said that further information about the type of manufacturing and other details will be disclosed later.

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