7 Things You Probably Didn't Know About The New Tata Sanand Plant

Tata Motors has been on a hot-streak of successful models in the past few years with plans to keep expanding its production and sales to not only get ahead of Hyundai, but also to get closer to Maruti Suzuki than ever before. As part of its growth plans, Tata has recently started production at a new plant in Sanand, Gujarat, where it is already manufacturing the company’s current crown jewel - the Tata Nexon. Here are 7 cool things you need to know about Tata’s factory expansion pack:

It Used To Be Ford’s!

Nope, we’re not talking about Jaguar Land Rover The facility now known as the Tata Passenger Electric Mobility (TPEM) Plant was a pre-existing manufacturing facility owned and operated by Ford India. It was at this plant that models like the Figo hatchback and Aspire sub-compact sedan were built. Unfortunately for the American automotive brand, it made the decision in 2021 to end manufacturing operations and car sales in India and close operations at its Sanand plant by the end of the same year. Tata seized the opportunity to acquire the Ford plant along with the buildings and machinery, sitting right next to its existing factory across the road. The cost for a used car factory with all the toys in it? Around Rs 725.7 crore, with an additional Rs 1,300 crore earmarked for retooling. For reference, the plant was originally built by Ford with an investment of approximately $1 billion.

Endless modifications

While Tata did enjoy the benefit of acquiring a standing car manufacturing facility when it took over the Ford Sanand plant, it still needed to do a lot of work to be able to make its own cars with existing infrastructure. Of course, the highly automated factory was set up with machinery designed to manufacture Ford’s cars with their own sizes and platforms. This meant hundreds upon hundreds (maybe even a couple of thousand) changes all across the factory through different stages of the manufacturing process. 

It includes everything from the press shop where steel sheets are stamped into shape, to the final assembly line for the interior and powertrain fitment. The automated paint shop alone needed over 800 modifications to the carrier system that moves the car’s shell along the line as well as 50 plus modifications to the painting robots and many new robots added to paint the insides.

Only took 1 year*

As per certain official timelines, it took Tata just one year from acquiring the Ford India Sanand plant to start rolling out road-worthy units from the same facility. Tata completed the acquisition on January 10, 2023 and the first car made there since, a Nexon, rolled off the production line on January 12, 2024. However, there is more to this timeline than just those two milestone events. Ford announced the closure of its Sanand facility towards the end of 2021, and Tata signed a Memorandum of Understanding for the acquisition in May, 2022. It took another 7 months to complete the takeover, and another 12 months to start rolling out market-ready units. In fact, Tata revealed that the conversion process was completed ahead of schedule, or it could have taken three more months till the first customer Nexon rolled off the line.

ICE and EV on the same production line

Given that the plant is for electric cars in name, it has been designed to support the manufacture of both internal combustion engine (ICE) and EVs on the same line. Tata Motors is currently the leading brand for EVs in India and for each electric car, there’s an ICE equivalent, like the Tata Nexon and Tata Nexon EV. Given that both have the same underpinnings, with minimal difference in body panel design, it’s only at the stage where the powertrain components are mated to a painted shell that the distinction between ICE and EV comes into play.

Compatible with 4 platforms

The production line at this ‘new’ Tata Sanand plant is further ready to handle the manufacturing of cars based on four different platforms, securing its long term utility. Of course, Tata did not disclose details of the platforms or models that will be made here in the future, but we can assume that it includes the acti.EV platform as well. Presently, the first and only acti.EV product is the Tata Punch EV which is manufactured at the facility in Ranjangaon, Maharashtra. However, this scalable and modular EV platform will also underpin upcoming models like the Tata Curvv EV and Tata Harrier EV. We expect the former if not both to be manufactured at the new TPEM plant.

In November 2023, Tata also confirmed its electric car platform sharing partnership with Jaguar Land Rover to develop the premium-segment Avinya model series. Given the plant’s capacity and its global standard construction, this model-series could possibly be produced at Sanand itself, though nothing has been stated officially on this matter.

Significant boost in production capacity

In terms of monthly figures from SIAM, Tata Motors produces around well over 10 lakh units per annum for domestic sales. The Sanand plant acquired from Ford India has unlocked the potential of producing another 3 lakh cars a year, with the scope of scaling up to 4.2 lakh units per annum. That’s a big bump in production capacity, which Tata needs given the brand’s growing popularity and its extensive list of new products that will be launched by 2026.

Next to greatness

Although Sanand is not the location that marked the beginning of Tata Motors, it holds equivalent significance in the brand’s legacy. The first Tata Sanand plant was set up for the purpose of manufacturing the iconic Tata Nano. Forced out of its Singur plant in West Bengal due to geo-political clashes, Tata found refuge in Gujarat to continue the ambitious project while trying to minimise the losses and started operations in 2010. Although the Nano project was eventually shut down without accomplishing all of its goals, the Tata Sanand plant has been etched into India’s automotive history. This newly acquired plant sits right next to the factory established to pursue a bright future for Indian cars, so maybe it will carry on the Tata Nano mission in spirit by making 4-wheeled mobility more accessible to the masses.

Do you have any questions about the new Tata motors facility in Sanand? What did you think was the most interesting thing listed above about this new factory? Let us know in the comments below.