The Hindu Business Line : LeasePlan on growth path; to enter fuel management

KEEN on keeping vehicular transport costs under control, Indian corporates are increasingly outsourcing purchase and maintenance of their vehicles to specialist fleet management companies.

LeasePlan Fleet Management India, a 100 per cent owned subsidiary of LeasePlan Corporation, for instance, has grown from 3,200 odd cars in 2002 to about 6,700 cars at present.

``Its gives an indication of the growth in the market. The Indian market is still in an early stage of development, but there is much potential for growth,'' said Mr Vahid Daemi, Chief Operating Officer, LeasePlan Corporation, who was in India recently.

At present, LeasePlan has about 275 clients in India. These include Whirlpool, Carrier Aircon, Castrol, Alcatel, Siemens, Compaq and Nicholas Piramal. The services offered by LeasePlan include fleet consultancy, vehicle acquisition programmes, formulation of car policy, vehicle financing, maintenance through the fleet's life cycle and resale at the end of the contracted period.

The company is also planning to increase its services in India by introducing fuel management for which it has tied up with petroleum major BPCL.

Corporates entering the fuel management agreement with LeasePlan will be issued Bharat Petroleum's SmartFleet Corporate fuel cards, which can be used for cashless transactions at BPCL outlets. This will enable LeasePlan to customise fuel budgets for corporates based on the car's model, expected fuel consumption and mileage, said Ms Veerle Behets, Managing Director, LeasePlan India. LeasePlan will create personalised fuel cards according to the company and car specifications.

LeasePlan Corporation's shareholding is set to undergo a change with Volkswagen agreeing to buy ABN Amro's stake in the company.

The company is represented in 27 countries across the globe with a total managed fleet of more than 1.3 million vehicles.