Hoshiarpur (Punjab)-based International Tractors (Sonalika) said on Friday that it will focus on export markets in the next seven years. The company targets to export 1 lakh units by 2030, from around 35,000 right now, to attain the leadership position in 25 countries.

The company is also setting up an export-oriented plant at Hoshiarpur at an investment of around ₹800 crore over the next three years, and a capacity of 1 lakh units of tractors per annum, Gaurav Saxena, Director and Chief Executive Officer- International Business, International Tractors (ITL), told businessline.

ITL sells tractors under Sonalika and Solis brands across markets, with Brazil, Turkey and the US its biggest markets right now, he said, adding that ITL is the fifth-largest player in terms of volumes globally, with a leadership position in as many as 14 countries.

“In the US, we just started two years back and last year we exported 2,800 units, and this year we expect that it would be around 5,000 units. We have big plans in the US as it is the third-largest country for tractors, and we are developing lot many products...we believe that we have a big chance to have 10 per cent market share in the US in the next few years,” said Saxena.

The company has less than 1 per cent market share right now in the US market, which has a size of around 2.50 lakh units a year.

In Latin America, the company exports around 6,000 units a year, of which 4,000 goes to Brazil, where the company also has an assembly plant, he said, adding that five products are localised there for which it gets the advantage. ITL has a total production capacity of around 3 lakh tractors to cater to both domestic and export markets and, therefore, an export-oriented plant will help the company strengthen its position in various markets including the US, he said.

ITL sells tractors ranging between 16hp (horsepower) and 125hp and is now working on even bigger products to cater to markets like the US, Saxena added.

The tractor market in India grew 14 per cent year-on-year (YoY) to 4,44,340 units in the first half of this financial year, as compared with 3,89,815 units in the same period last year.

However, in the month of September the retail sales declined by around 10 per cent YoY to 54,492 units as compared with 60,321 units in same month last year.

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