Indian joint venture motorcycle manufacturing company becomes 100% YMC owned Company name changed to Yamaha Motor India Private Limited

An agreement has recently been reached between Yamaha Motor Co., Ltd. (YMC) and its joint venture partner in India, Escorts Limited (Chairman and Managing Director: Mr. Rajan Nanda. Location: Faridabad, suburbs of New Delhi) under which YMC will acquire all of the 26% of the stock presently held by Escorts Limited in the two companies' motorcycle manufacturing and marketing joint venture, Yamaha Motor Escorts Ltd. (YMEL).
The aims of this move to make Yamaha Motor Escorts a 100% YMC subsidiary are to increase the overall speed of managerial and business decisions, to improve product development capabilities and production efficiency, while also strengthening the marketing organization. Plans call for the change in the company's name and other procedures to be completed by the end of June.
Ever since the establishment of the first technical assistance agreement between the two companies in 1985, YMC and Escorts Limited have built a cooperative relationship dedicated to the manufacture and sales of Yamaha brand motorcycles in an environment of growing motorcycle demand in the Indian market. In November of 1995, the two companies established the joint venture company Escorts Yamaha Motor Limited, based on a 50-50 capital investment. In June of 2000, that investment ratio was changed to 74% for YMC and 26% for Escorts Limited and YMC assumed managerial control of the company with the name being changed to YMEL and undertook numerous measures to build the company's motorcycle manufacturing and marketing operations.
In addition to YMC acquiring Escorts' 26% of YMEL stock, the company's name will be changed to Yamaha Motor India Private Limited (YMI) and concerted efforts will be made to heighten its competitiveness in the Indian market and promote the spread of the Yamaha brand with target themes of developing products with greater appeal and a distribution network that can respond more quickly to user needs.
Furthermore, YMC will work to develop YMI as an exporter of business type motorcycles to neighboring countries and other markets such as Africa and Latin America, and also as a production base that can assume a variety of roles in Yamaha's global manufacturing network.
Presently, India's annual motorcycle demand has grown to exceed 3.8 million units, which makes it the second largest market in the world, with steady growth is anticipated for the future. Now that YMI has become a 100% YMC subsidiary, the introduction of several new models is planned, and it is our goal to increase annual production to 350,000 units in the fiscal year 2001 and to 550,000 units by the fiscal year 2003.

* Figures calculated at exchange rates of : 1 rupee =2.6 yen