Chandrasekaran allays fears of Iveco plant closures ahead of union talks
Tata Sons chair Natarajan Chandrasekaran said on Tuesday that the conglomerate is not looking to reduce the global manufacturing and sales footprint of Italian truckmaker Iveco Group, fending off concerns about any reduction in factory or corporate presence in Europe ahead of wage negotiations with Italian worker unions.
During a press conference in Turin after Tata Motors Ltd managed to take control of Iveco following a 15-month acquisition process, Chandrasekaran said Iveco’s headquarters would remain in Italy and that both the companies would leverage each other’s technologies and markets.
“We have run global businesses for a long time. And I've been fortunate to build, manage and grow businesses globally across the world in more than 100 countries,” Chandrasekaran said in response to a question about Iveco’s plans for its international plants.
“Building a global business is about respecting different markets, different market needs, talent in different markets, and the know-how about that market's product needs. And that's fundamental. So it is not a consolidation exercise,” he said, adding that the management couldn’t immediately specify the road ahead for each plant.
Iveco Group operates 16 industrial sites globally, with manufacturing concentrated in Europe and South America, alongside a presence in China. Italy serves as its largest production base, housing medium truck manufacturing in Brescia, light commercial vehicles in Suzzara, and engine and powertrain facilities in Foggia and Turin.
Its European network also spans truck plants in Madrid and Valladolid in Spain, bus facilities in France and the Czech Republic, and an electric and hydrogen truck plant in Ulm, Germany. Overseas, the group manufactures trucks and engines in Córdoba, Argentina, light-to-heavy vehicles in Sete Lagoas, Brazil, and engines in Chongqing, China.
Italian wage talks
Chandrasekaran’s remarks come ahead of wage negotiations with the workers’ union in Italy, scheduled to begin on 10 November.
In the run-up to joint negotiations with CNH Industrial, Ferrari, Iveco, and Stellantis, the unions issued a statement in October, saying, “In this very difficult phase, we must aim to protect not only jobs, but quality, decently paid jobs, to make the agreement a source of certainty, and to fully safeguard purchasing power.”
Speculation over Iveco’s global strategy comes after Tata Motors agreed not to immediately restructure the company's workforce or Italian plants, a key commitment made to secure clearance from the Italian government.
The Tata chairman noted that Tata Motors plans to unlock synergies with the Iveco Group and climb global sales rankings by expanding its footprint across India, Europe, and Latin America.
“Already the combined group of Tata Motors and Iveco is fourth largest and our ambitions are high,” Chandrasekaran said during his presentation at the conference.
“While ranking per se is not important and that is not the destination by itself, what it also signifies is it gives us the opportunity of scale because scales matter as much as technology matters,” he added.
Turnaround strategy
With the €3.9 billion acquisition finalized, attention now shifts to turning around Iveco, which has struggled in key markets. In 2025, the company's revenue fell 7% to €13.4 billion, while net profit more than halved to €233 million from €489 million the previous year. Chandrasekaran, Jaguar Land Rover chief executive P.B. Balaji, and Tata Motors managing director Girish Wagh are among the top executives set to join Iveco.
Originally expected to close in June, the deal was delayed by regulatory approvals. The transaction creates a commercial vehicle powerhouse with combined annual sales of over 540,000 units and revenue exceeding $25 billion. According to earlier disclosures, Europe will account for nearly half of total sales, followed by India at 35% and the Americas at 15%.
Iveco has a strong position in Europe and is the third-largest commercial vehicle maker in Latin America, while Tata Motors has a more established presence in India and parts of Africa. The companies also have complementary distribution networks in markets such as West Asia, creating scope to expand each other’s reach.
The acquisition will also give Tata Motors access to products that it does not currently offer at scale, including heavy-duty deep-mining trucks and tractor-trailers. When the deal was first announced in July 2025, Tata Motors noted that the acquisition would present a meaningful opportunity to gain market share as commercial vehicle businesses are not easy to expand organically.