Toyota Motors launches CNG Innova

Auto manufacturer, Toyota Kirloskar Motor (TKM), launched its new variant of Innova on Friday, powered with compressed natural gas (CNG).

The Innova would be dual-fuel vehicle and would use CNG as an alternate fuel, the company said in a statement issued here.

"With CNG having established itself as an eco-friendly, reliable and economic fuel, TKM is pleased to announce India's first-ever energy-efficient, multi-purpose vehicle in the country," TKM managing director, Hiroshi Nakagawa, said.

CNG Innova will be priced at around Rs 85,000 higher than the current petrol version.

TKM has tied up with leading CNG kit supplier, Minda Auto Gas Ltd, to supply CNG kits.

"Offering the Innova with a CNG kit will only add to its long-standing appeal, as it will not only be eco-friendly, it will also be hugely economical," TKM deputy managing director Sandeep Singh said.

In the first phase of its launch, CNG Innova has been introduced in Delhi, Mumbai, Surat, Hyderabad and Ahmedabad and would be soon launched in Baroda and Vijayawada.

TKM's new plant in Bangalore is scheduled to start production in 2010. The company is investing Rs 32 billion in this plant.