The Hindu Business Line : Leyland mulls sales to foreign defence forces

Addressing shareholders at the company's annual general meeting here on Thursday, the Managing Director, Mr R. Seshasayee, said the company planned to "offer appropriate vehicles to the defence forces" of other countries.

Later, talking to reporters, he said these sales took a long time to materialise. The company was in discussions with some likely buyers, he said without elaborating. The company hoped to start these sales at least next year.

He told the shareholders that Ashok Leyland was expanding capacities at its plants over the next two years and would also come out with new products that would help it meet competition. The company anticipated more commercial vehicle manufacturers coming into the country not only from the US and Europe but also from China and Korea.

The company would spend about Rs 550 crore over the next two years to raise capacity to 75,000 a year and another 10,000 units for new generation products that were being planned. The target was to contain fixed assets increase to 25 per cent for capacity increase to 55 per cent, he said.

Mr Seshasayee said the company's e-sourcing (buying components through reverse auctions on the Internet) in collaboration with Wipro was beginning to show results.

A new axle was being developed, production of which would commence this year.

He said that Ashok Leyland would also develop a Euro-III compliant common rail fuel injection engine through in-house research and development, along with a consultant. Later, he said the consultant was AVL of Austria and the project for this new engine would run for two years.

Among other resolutions, the shareholders also approved one to change one of the company's auditors. Ashok Leyland's Chairman, Mr R.J. Shahaney, informed the shareholders that PricewaterhouseCoopers, chartered accountants, who had been the company's auditors since 1982, did not wish to be considered for re-appointment. This was in line with the firm's global strategy of being appointed the sole auditor. In its place, the shareholders approved the appointment of Deloitte, Haskins and Sells as an auditor of Ashok Leyland.

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