The Hindu Business Line : Ashok Leyland eyes defence vehicle exports to W. Asia

Ashok Leyland has signed an agreement this week for initial supply of 100 trucks and 100 buses to Sudan and is executing an order for supply of 3,322 trucks to Iraq — the largest order so far for commercial vehicles from India.

The company is planning to aggressively target West Asian and North African markets including Iraq and the GCC States for its advanced defence vehicles, a senior company official said at the venue of IDEX 2005 here on Tuesday.

The Indian major signed the agreement with Sudan government's assembly plant, GIAD, for a $5-million deal for supply of 100 trucks. The plant supplies vehicles to the Sudan Ministry of Defence. The 100 Falcon buses will be used for civilian purposes, Mr Ram Cowsik, General Manager, Exports, Ashok Leyland, said. The vehicles will be transported on a knocked-down basis and assembled in Sudan. The trial order could pave the way for a later requirement of around 500 trucks and 500 buses a year.

Mr Cowsik said that the company has, in the past one year, been in the process of executing a major order of over 3,000 vehicles from Iraq and plans to enter the fray for defence vehicles there, in the post-election scenario. It is also hoping to tap the GCC States for its defence vehicles, while initial trials for defence trucks are under way in Kenya and Ghana. "We are confident our vehicles meet the performance requirements of the prospective markets. The Stallion 4x4 is currently undergoing trials in Kenya and other African countries, with encouraging results," said Mr R. Seshasayee, Managing Director.

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