JSW Group Enters Defence Sector with Gecko Motors Acquisition

New Delhi, Jan 25 (PTI) Leading conglomerate JSW Group on Thursday said it has forayed into the defence sector and has acquired a majority stake in an extreme off-road vehicle company Gecko Motors Pvt Ltd.

Its vertical -- JSW Defence and Aerospace -- has bought the stake in the company that has been renamed as JSW Gecko Motors Pvt Ltd (JSW Gecko).

JSW Gecko, promoted by its founders led by Jaskirat Singh Nagra, has secured an order worth Rs 250 crore from the defence ministry for the manufacture and supply of 96 Specialist Mobility Vehicles branded as ATOR N1200, according to a release.

The vehicles are being manufactured at JSW Gecko's newly set-up manufacturing unit in Chandigarh, Punjab and will be supplied to the Armed Forces by June 2024.

JSW ATOR N1200 will be showcased at the Republic Day parade on Friday, the release said.

The ATOR N1200 is an indigenised version of the SHERP N1200 amphibious extreme mobility vehicle, designed by UK-based Copato Ltd.

Copato has entered into a joint venture pact with JSW Defence and JSW Gecko along with technology supply license agreement for the manufacture of the Specialist Mobility Vehicles in India.

"We are pleased to have the opportunity to present to the Indian market, and especially to the defence sector an unique, innovative and technologically advanced Specialist Mobility Vehicles that has no analogues in the world in terms of its capabilities and characteristics and has no competitors in the off-road ability and manoeuvrability," JSW Gecko CEO Viktoria Tverdokhleb said.