Citroen sets 1.5 million units production target by 2021-22

French car manufacturer Citroen is planning to increase production to 1.5 million units by 2021-22 globally with new range of vehicles, and India will considerably contribute to this growth story, a top company official said. "I have an objective to grow the volumes from 1 million units to 1.5 million units by 2021-22 worldwide. The key aspect is - I need to become more international because I cannot be totally reliant on Europe. I need to have a balanced portfolio of regions. So, if something goes wrong in Europe, I know I have strong regions to bank on," Citroen Global chief executive officer Linda Jackson said here.

She said, after the flagship vehicle Citroen C5 Aircross is launched in India by 2020, there will be new products coming in from 2021. "So, by 2023-24, we are expecting the culmination of that building exponentially. So, the 1.5 million will grow further. But, before that 1.5 million will not be much from India because India would literally have launched one vehicle by 2021. By three years, it will be much bigger as a proportion of the total mix," she added. Today, France is the company's biggest market, while China is the second.

"By 2023-24, India needs to be moving up the ranking," Jackson added. The auto company is planning to exploit growth potential for Citroen in geographies such as Southeast Asia, India, South America. It is already present these regions. "We believe we have got opportunities and India is a big part of how we can improve. Look at the size of the market. By 2025, somebody tells me it could be 6 million. India will be one of the biggest market," the CEO said. Citroen Senior Director (marketing operations in India), Saurabh Vatsa said the commercial production of C5 Aircross SUV will begin in India from the third quarter of next calendar year.

"We will import the components and locally assemble them. However, in the next phase under our C Cubed program, we will locally integrate 90 per cent to be competitive," Vatsa said. Meanwhile, Citroen Senior Vice President (sales and & marketing in India) Roland Bouchara, said the company is also planning to manufacture accessories that can be easily fitted at home. "We will manufacture these accessories in India to customise the exterior and the interior of our vehicles in different colours and styles to suit different tastes. It can customise their cars or change the look in every few months or years," Bouchara said.

Citroen is a brand of PSA Group, which has another four car brands -- Peugeot, DS, Opel and Vauxhall. The company, at the beginning of 2017, had signed two joint venture agreements with CK Birla.