Ashok Leyland is banking on Asean markets like Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines along with Egypt, other African countries and West Asia for growth in overseas business. It is also hoping for the recovery of Bangladesh’s economy for growth in its sales in the neighbouring country.
At present, the company sells about 1,100-1,200 units a month, mostly light commercial vehicles (LCVs) and buses, to markets in the sub-continent, Gulf and Africa.
While exports comprise around 7-8% of its sales, Ashok Leyland is targeting 20% of sales from overseas markets in five years.
In two years, it plans to expand the export market from 38 countries to 50 countries. Incidentally, till 2019, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka accounted for 50% of sales. “If the Bangladesh market recovers, we will add another 500 units monthly. At present, we have nine plants in Saarc, Middle East, and Africa and four more are in the works — two in Africa and two more in Middle East-North Africa. We will also be finalising a CKD assembly plant in either Indonesia or Malaysia within 6 months,” said Ashok Leyland president (LCV, international operations, defence, and power solutions) Amandeep Singh. In the domestic market, it plans to finalise a sub-2 tonne LCV — powered by both electric and internal combustion engines — within a year to address an additional 20% of the LCV market.
Around 1.8 lakh LCVs in the sub-2 tonne category were sold in India last year. Tata Motors with the Ace is the market leader in this segment, with several three-wheeler players.
Ashok Leyland will also increase the Bada Dost portfolio which currently has two models of 3.2 tonne and 3.5 tonne to add another 3.8 tonne capacity.
Last year, 3.3 lakh LCVs of 2-3.5 tonne capacity were sold in India. Ashok Leyland sold 67,000 units last year and moved into the second spot displacing Tata Motors. The rest of the market (3.5 tonnes to 7.5 tonnes) accounts for around 90,000 units.
Ashok Leyland has Partner trucks in this segment. Ashok Leyland’s EV arm Switch Mobility showcased LCVs IeV3 and IeV4 a month ago and will start production in January. “We are trying to improve our market share in the north and east. Though 39% of the vehicles get sold in this market, the two markets account for only 12% of our sales,” said Singh.
