NEW DELHI: Stellantis plans to nearly triple vehicle production in India to around 50,000 units next year, from about 18,000 currently, as the automaker expands the country’s role in its global manufacturing and export operations.Around 60% of the proposed output will be exported, while the remaining 40% will be sold domestically, Stellantis India CEO and managing director Shailesh Hazela told TOI. “The vehicles exported are the same ones that we produce here in India and sell in India,” Hazela said. “The split will be in the range of 40% domestic and 60% export next year.”The company manufactures vehicles at its Thiruvallur facility in Tamil Nadu, where it has partnered with Hindustan Motor Finance Corporation, an arm of the CK Birla Group, since 2017. Hazela said the arrangement had helped develop local manufacturing, sourcing and engineering capabilities.The planned expansion forms part of Stellantis’s FaSTLAne 2030 strategy. India’s cost structure, localisation potential and supplier ecosystem would allow the company to manufacture vehicles locally for domestic and overseas markets, he said.Stellantis has invested close to 1 billion euros across its India operations and will continue investing in manufacturing, research and development and other areas. Hazela did not disclose the size of the proposed additional investment.The automaker is also preparing to expand its product portfolio after a relatively quiet period for launches.