Doosan Bobcat enters Indian backhoe market

Doosan Bobcat has opened its new backhoe loader plant in India, marking its entrance into one of the world’s three largest compact construction equipment markets.

The plant has a site area of 80,000m², a factory floor area of 15,000m² and is capable of producing 8,000 machines a year.

Doosan Bobcat has entered the backhoe loader market in a bid to expand its emerging market portfolio with the aim of exploring mid- and long-term growth engines.

India’s compact equipment market is the third largest in the world after the US and China, with an estimated worth of KRW 1.3 trillion (US$1.1 billion), where the backhoe loader sales account for more than 80%.

Since 2014, the Indian backhoe loader market has grown at an average annual rate of 9.7%.

The facilities were idle, meaning the company did not have to establish a new plant. The first batch of backhoe loaders will be released in the second half of 2019.

Doosan Bobcat President and CEO, Scott Park, said: “With government-led infrastructure investment increasing in recent years, the compact market is growing rapidly in India, making it a highly attractive market. Our mid and long-term goal, beginning with backhoe loaders, is to lead the Indian small construction machinery market.”