Indian motorbikes roar into Indonesian market
Indian motorbikes roar into Indonesian market
JAKARTA (JP): Indian motorbike manufacturer Hero-Puch of the
Hero Group introduced here on Monday the Motorilenia, officially
entering the competition for the country's growing motorbike
market.
Setia Abednego, the president of PT KANCIL, the sole
distributor of the Motorilenia, said he was upbeat the Indian
motorbike would succeed in competing with such established names
as Honda, Yamaha, Kawasaki and Suzuki.
"We are targeting particular segments such as the scooter and
general motorbike markets," he said during a break in the
launching ceremony, adding that the company expected to sell
about 5,000 units per month.
Motorilenia, imported from India completely built up, comes in
two models, the Mallika and Winner, each with an engine capacity
of 75cc. They will be priced at between Rp 7.5 million (US$937)
and Rp 9.5 million on the road, much less expensive than Japanese
brands.
Setia said Motorilenia was produced by Indian motorbike
manufacturer Hero-Puch, which has production bases in Argentina,
Brazil, Colombia, Iran, Mauritius and Nigeria.
He said his company and Hero-Puch planned to open an assembly
plant in Indonesia to better compete against existing motorbike
brands.
The companies have allocated about $15 million in initial
investment for the marketing of the Motorilenia and to construct
the assembly plant, he said.
"We plan to import the Motorilenia for six months only, before
the company is able to assemble (the motorbikes) locally," he
said.
Indonesia places restrictions on the import of motorbikes to
protect the local industry, which collectively has invested
approximately $400 million in developing its assembly operations.
The diversified business group Bosowa Group, based in
Makassar, South Sulawesi, announced earlier its new motorbike
assembly plant in Karawang, West Java, would begin commercial
operations in April.
Bosowa Group, in cooperation with South Korean motorcycle
manufacturer Hyosung Motors & Machinery Inc., has invested
approximately $20 million in the plant.
The group said it would produce about 10,000 motorbikes this
year with engine sizes of between 50cc and 125cc.
Another company has begun selling Chinese motorbikes in an
effort to capitalize on Indonesia's huge motorbike market.
Indonesia's motorcycle market, the world's third largest after
China and India, suffered a major setback in 1998 when the
economic crisis struck.
Domestic sales plummeted from 1.88 million units in 1997 to
430,948 in 1998 as a result of the crisis.
The industry began to show signs of recovery last year with
total sales rising to 487,759 units, according to data from the
Association of Indonesian Motorcycle Sole Agents and
Manufacturers.
The association predicted motorcycle production would increase
to 700,000 units this year. (cst)