KTM’s motorcycle production is staying in Mattighofen, Austria. CEO Gottfried Neumeister said so directly this week, pushing back on a rumour that’s been circulating for over a year: that Bajaj Auto, KTM’s majority owner since its 2025 restructuring, would shift the brand’s larger-capacity production to India. Neumeister pointed to more than 440 engineers still based at Mattighofen designing KTM’s products, and called the commitment to Austria “clear.”

Where the rumour actually came from

The speculation traces back to comments from Rajiv Bajaj, head of Bajaj Auto, who declared European production “dead” a little over a year ago as part of his broader public commentary on fixing KTM’s finances after its 2024-2025 insolvency crisis. That single line has been read ever since as a signal that Mattighofen’s assembly lines were on borrowed time, with KTM motorcycles eventually built exclusively in India.

Neumeister’s statement doesn’t walk that comment back entirely — it’s narrower and more specific: moving production to India “is not on the agenda” for the bikes currently built in Austria.

What’s already true, and what isn’t changing

This is a rumour about where KTM’s larger bikes get built, not a claim that nothing has moved — because something already has. KTM’s 125, 250 and 390 models are already manufactured at Bajaj’s Chakan plant near Pune, India, and have been for years; that arrangement isn’t news and isn’t what Neumeister was asked about. The denial specifically covers the bigger-displacement models — the Adventures, Dukes and 690/790/890-class machines — that are built in Austria today.

Status
KTM 125/250/390 Already built in India (Bajaj Chakan plant) — unchanged
KTM 690/790/890-class and larger Built in Austria (Mattighofen) — CEO confirms staying put
Engineering/design headcount in Austria 440+ engineers, per Neumeister

Why this keeps resurfacing

KTM’s finances are still the backdrop to every one of these stories. The brand went through a well-documented insolvency restructuring, and Bajaj’s increased control over the parent group since then has made every comment from Rajiv Bajaj about efficiency or cost get read as a hint about Austria’s future. It’s the same dynamic playing out at MV Agusta, where financial restructuring and a stalled factory have made every ownership rumour land harder than it would at a healthier company — a manufacturer under financial pressure doesn’t get the benefit of the doubt on its own executives’ throwaway lines.

For now, at least, the bikes keep coming out of Austria — including the 690 Rally that finally got its official price tag last week, built on exactly the kind of mid-size platform this rumour was supposedly about to uproot.

FAQ

Is KTM moving motorcycle production to India?

No. KTM CEO Gottfried Neumeister says moving production to India “is not on the agenda,” and that production of KTM’s larger-capacity models continues at Mattighofen, Austria.

Which KTM models are already built in India?

The smaller-capacity 125, 250 and 390 models have been built at Bajaj’s Chakan plant near Pune for years — that arrangement predates this rumour and isn’t changing.

Why did this rumour start?

Bajaj Auto head Rajiv Bajaj called European production “dead” in public comments roughly a year ago, made in the context of KTM’s financial restructuring — a line that’s been read since as a signal the Austrian plant’s days were numbered.

Who owns KTM now?

Bajaj Auto became KTM’s majority owner through the restructuring that followed KTM’s 2024-2025 insolvency crisis.

Reporting via: finance.yahoo.com, visordown.com, rideapart.com, motorcycles.news