Schaeffler India Limited plans to increase capital expenditure to more than INR 5 billion in 2026 after capacity utilisation across its manufacturing plants exceeded 85 percent in the fourth quarter of calendar year 2025. The company said it had moderated investments in 2025 to leverage existing installed assets but will step up spending in line with demand and capacity requirements.
“The last quarter the capacity utilizations in our plants have been pretty robust and we had all the plants running well above 85 percent capacity utilizations,” said Harsha Kadam, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Schaeffler India. He added that the company continues to adjust investments in line with market developments while maintaining focus on localisation and efficiency.
Director Finance and Chief Financial Officer Hardevi Vazirani said the company would increase capital expenditure next year. “Talking about 2026 we will be stepping up again to the average of previous three years levels over 500 crores,” she said.
Capital expenditure during the year remained in line with internal plans. Schaeffler India reported capex of INR 1.17 billion in the fourth quarter of 2025, compared with INR 843 million in the preceding quarter and INR 1.55 billion in the corresponding quarter last year. For the year ended December 2025, capex totalled INR 3.84 billion, lower than INR 6.91 billion in 2024. As a percentage of sales, capex stood at 4.1 percent for the year ended December 2025, compared with 8.6 percent in 2024, reflecting a moderated investment cycle while maintaining focus on operational and financial metrics.
The company said it has begun leveraging previously installed capacity, moderating fresh investments in 2025 while focusing on improving productivity and utilisation of existing assets. Management noted that manufacturing lines under relocation, including those shifted to the Hosur plant, have been installed and are expected to stabilise during the year. In drivetrain technologies, hybrid programmes have entered series production, while internal combustion engine volumes continue to show growth.
Revenue for the October–December 2025 quarter rose 26.9 percent year-on-year to INR 26.43 billion, up 12 percent sequentially. Profit after tax for the quarter stood at INR 3.28 billion, while free cash flow increased 56 percent year-on-year to INR 2.54 billion. For the full year, revenue reached INR 93.95 billion, representing 16.3 percent growth over the previous year, with EBITDA margin at 19.6 percent compared with 18.5 percent a year earlier.
The company reported sustained new business wins across automotive technologies, vehicle lifetime solutions and bearings and industrial solutions. In automotive technologies, it secured programmes in passenger vehicle clutches, dual mass flywheels and hydraulic cam phasers, and confirmed that hybrid programmes have entered production. “We already have a business win on the hybrids which we have started the series production,” Kadam said.
Schaeffler India also continued to increase localisation levels during the quarter, with management linking margin improvement to localisation benefits alongside volume gains and capital efficiency. The company said it had further raised localisation percentages in Q4 and has begun the next phase of localisation investments in its e-axle programme, aligning electrification growth with domestic manufacturing expansion.
In electric mobility, the company said its e-axle volumes in 2025 exceeded internal projections and that it has begun investing in further localisation. “We have started to invest in the next phase of localization of the production itself which is going according to the plan,” Kadam said.
Export momentum strengthened during the year, with passenger vehicle exports rising 16 percent, commercial vehicle exports increasing 58 percent and two-wheeler exports up 24 percent for the full year. Working capital improved to 17.9 percent of sales in the fourth quarter, compared with around 19 percent in earlier periods.
The board recommended a dividend of INR 35 per equity share, within its targeted payout ratio of 30 to 50 percent of net income.
Schaeffler India Limited manufactures automotive components, bearings and industrial solutions for original equipment manufacturers, the aftermarket and export markets.
