French car major Renault is set to launch five new cars in India before 2012. The company, which is setting up INR 4,500 crore car manufacturing plant at Oragadam along with its Japanese partner, has said that it is targeting 70,000 units over next four to five years.

Speaking to Business Standard, Mr Marc Nassif MD of Renault India said that "On the industrial side, our plan to invest INR 4,500 crore before 2015 is clear: for setting up a manufacturing unit with a capacity of 400,000 vehicles a year.”

He said that “The first model from Renault for India will be Fluence, to be launched by mid 2011. India is confirmed, along with Brazil and Russia, as a top-priority for Renault expansion.”

According to Mr Ashish Sinharoy vice president (communications and corporate affairs) of Renault India, the company has set a target of 5% of the Indian car market by 2020 and would launch five models with a sales target of 70,000 units by 2014.

He said the company's target segment would be the average car buyer from middle- and upper middle-class. He added that "High end segment is not part of company's DNA.”

The first model Fluence, a luxury sedan, would be followed by Koleos, a high-end compact SUV in October.

He added that Renault would add seven to 10 dealers in India by mid-2011, and by 2012, it would be increased to 70. With that, "we will cover 80 per cent of the car buying geography in the country," said Sinharoy.

(Sourced from BS)