Shenu Agarwal, MD and CEO of Ashok Leyland said that even though the medium and heavy commercial vehicle (M&HCV) segment grew at a rate of 8–9% in the first five months of the fiscal year, the bus segment grew at a rate almost 2.5 times.
He attributed it to the strong demand from both the government and private sectors, which culminated in the pent-up demand as well as the slowdown earlier.
Agarwal added that Ashok Leyland's market share in the bus segment has been on the rise, thereby spiking the gap between themselves and the number two player.
Further, the senior executive stated that state transport units (STU) are now favouring buses, which have lower operating costs than the initial prices. He went on to say that this is advantageous for a company like Ashok Leyland, which has a lower TCO.
Asked if the company will be adding capacity to meet the rising demand for buses, Agarwal noted that, as far as traditional vehicles are concerned, Ashok Leyland has enough capacity to meet demand for the next 2-3 years. Any potential capacity expansion would only be for alternative fuel vehicles, but that would depend on the speed at which demand for those vehicles grows.
Ashok Leyland, the flagship company of the Hinduja Group, holds a dominant position in the commercial vehicle industry. It is the second-largest manufacturer of commercial vehicles (CV) in India, the third-largest manufacturer of buses globally, and the tenth-largest manufacturer of trucks worldwide.