Mahindra & Mahindra is looking at maintaining leadership position in the fast growing sports utility vehicle segment in the current fiscal with demand remaining robust for its model range, according to the group CFO Manoj Bhat. The company, which is sitting on an order backlog of 2.92 lakh units for sports utility vehicles (SUV), also plans to ramp-up production capacity by the end of this year, as it looks to cut waiting periods on various models.

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In an interaction with PTI, Bhat said there is a huge demand for company products which is evident with the number of open bookings generated by the auto major.

"If you look at the last quarter booking numbers there is huge demand across the board... Demand for XUV300/400, Thar and demand for the Scorpio and XUV700 range continues to be strong... So from that perspective it is good that the customer is getting more choice with more products," he noted.

When asked if the company is looking at a leadership position in the SUV segment this fiscal, Bhat stated: "That is our objective".

He noted that it is ultimately the consumer who will decide (regarding the top slot) but "the company feels confident about its product portfolio".

The SUV segment is now the largest in the 39 lakh unit per annum strong domestic passenger vehicle industry. In May, the segment accounted for 47 per cent of the overall sales in the PV segment.

Mahindra & Mahindra competes with the likes of Maruti Suzuki, Tata Motors and Hyundai in the SUV segment. Bhat said Mahindra has also retained the leading position in terms of SUV revenue market share last fiscal.

In FY23, the company reported its highest-ever sales volume at 6.98 lakh units, up 50 per cent as compared to 2021-22.

Bhat noted that production capacity will be ramped up by the end of the year in the auto segment as it looks to curtail huge waiting periods on its various models.
The company has stated that it has enhanced its SUV production capacity from 29,000 units to 39,000 units per month in FY23.

It now plans to scale it up to 49,000 units a month in FY24.

"In the auto segment capacity increases will happen by the end of the year, but in the meantime I think the effort will be to improve utilisation," he stated.

From a demand perspective, the company continues to see robust response with no signs of a slowdown.

For the 2022-23 fiscal, Mahindra & Mahindra posted a consolidated PAT of Rs 10,282 crore, its highest-ever annual profit in a fiscal year.

The automaker has revised upward the capital expenditure (capex) outlay for the three years cycle of FY22-FY24 to Rs 15,900 crore from Rs 15,075 crore announced earlier.