‘Immense potential to run buses on alternative fuels in India’

Swedish commercial vehicle firm Scania, now owned by Volkswagen Group, is the latest European brand that seeks to carve a niche in the Indian premium truck and bus markets. Scania has been a frontrunner in promoting sustainable transport solutions globally. It seeks to do the same in India too. Its bus plant, commissioned in March this year, has a bio-gas production unit, which will help produce alternative fuels locally. Thus, the company seeks to broaden the scope for manufacturing more products powered by alternative fuels. Anders Grundströmer, Managing Director, Scania India and Senior Vice President, Scania Group, spoke to The Hindu about the company’s plans and the transport sector in India. Excerpts

How have you been growing after the launch of your local assembly facilities?

The response is really good, we are able to achieve 80 per cent on localisation of the complete product and 100 per cent on the bus body. Our first batch of premium Metrolink buses to KSRTC was locally manufactured. Our aim is to achieve 100 per cent localisation. Our current capacity can produce up to 1,000 buses and 2,500 trucks and we are set to double our capacity to 2,500 buses and 5,000 trucks in the next five years. We have received orders from both State Transport Undertakings (STUs) and private players. We will be soon handing over locally manufactured ethanol-run green buses to Nagpur Municipal Corporation.

How are regulations evolving in India for safe and comfortable mobility solutions?

Passengers in India are gradually but effectively understanding the necessity for safe transport, and are consciously opting for more comfortable options of travel. The growing demand for safe travel among passengers in India has driven transport bodies to chart out new reforms, leveraging the clause for safety. At Scania, we are persistent in our messaging, emphasising on road safety and passenger comfort, we will ensure this in action through our products. I am confident that the road safety scenario in India is changing for good.

Despite improvements in road conditions, accidents and fatalities involving buses are still high in India. Is lack of focus on driver training a major cause?

As you rightly pointed out, driver training plays a crucial part in the transport grid. A well trained driver has so much to offer in an emergency and adds value to the total operating economy (TOE) of the fleet operation. A trained driver can avert major on-road accidents through efficient handling of the vehicle, while also increasing fuel efficiency by up to 11 per cent, which can have a huge impact on the operational economy. Scania is serious about training drivers. We have an intense programme for drivers at our training academy and all our customers ensure that their drivers are trained at our academy before getting their vehicles on the road.

What are your views on the introduction of a bus code in India?

It is a good thing that new norms and regulations are laid down in order to improve passenger comfort and safety. This is a sign that safety and comfort is taken more seriously. The road transport department should contrive secure codes for driver training as well. All the bus manufacturers in India should welcome this move and adhere to the norms meticulously. Usage of poor materials to build buses can double the impact and intensity of on-road mishaps. Badly maintained bus, with passengers cramped inside the bus throughout the journey, broken seats and raised steps are a common sight on the roads, will now be a thing of the past. A safe and comfortable travel will encourage commuters to opt for local transport over personal vehicles. This will also keep peak hour traffic congestion and carbon emission under check.

What is your take on the Road Transport and Safety Bill 2015?

Our vision for India compliments India’s economic and transport vision in every aspect. Having said that, it is a good thing that road transport is getting regulated as this secures common interest for road and commuter safety. The need of the hour is a cost-effective and efficient transport system, and implementing the road transport and safety bill will ensure a place for alternative fuels among other vital amendments. This will be a huge step in realising a sustainable transport system a reality in India.

Scania has been showing a lot of interest in green bus concepts. Do we see Scania being a frontrunner in this segment in India?

We launched the first ethanol bus in Sweden in the 1980s, in the past three decades we have been successfully running buses powered with alternative fuels in many countries spanning across Europe, Latin America, South Africa and South-East Asia. We have a strong vision for sustainable transport system in India, with this vision we launched the first ethanol run Green Bus in India last year and the response so far is tremendous. The Green Bus is currently plying in Nagpur on a pilot case, Nagpur Municipal Corporation has expressed its interest in procuring more Green Buses, Uttar Pradesh government had called for demonstration of Green Bus early this year in Lucknow and are keen on running the buses on trial basis in the cities of Lucknow and Agra. We also received enquiry from BMTC (Bangalore Metropolitan Transport Corporation).

India has immense opportunity to run buses powered with alternative fuels. For instance, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu are major producers of sugarcane from which ethanol is produced. Bio-fuels can be produced from agro-waste and sewage as well, this will give scope to convert local waste to local fuel for local transport. We have signed MoU with Swedfund to establish sewage treatment plant in Nagpur to produce bio-gas. A growing economy like India should have a strong sustainable transport agenda, as urbanisation will keep bustling and the need for transport will increase and so will the carbon emission. By opting for locally manufactured fuel we can ensure empowerment of farmers, reduce the oil import burden on the economy and efficient waste management in the country. The technology that we have to support sustainable transport system is here and now.

What is Scania’s brand positioning in the Indian bus market?

The premium segment makes up a small composition in the bus market of India, but this is growing rapidly. There is growing consciousness among fleet operators and passengers for safety and premium comfort. This demand has led to the opening of the market for premium players. All Scania products are same universally and we maintain the same quality standards throughout our markets globally. This aspect itself is a USP of Scania in India, and we do not compromise on quality in order to come up with cheaper version of products. We offer superior, safe and robust products that deliver excellent fuel efficiency and Total Operating Economy (TOE). Scania Metrolink is the safest bus in India with a progressive safety system and ultra-premium comfort features. In addition to this we have a first-class aftermarket service, and customer support solutions such as Fleet Management Service (FMS) and driver training programme. Our current market share is close to 30 per cent in the intercity bus segment. While in the city bus segment, we are looking at launching products that will run on bio-fuels.

How strong is your dealer and service network in India and what are your immediate term focus areas?

We have a healthy proportion of dealer networks in India. Our south base is strong and we are expanding rapidly in other geographies too. We recently launched a dealership in Bangalore and the numbers are growing. After establishing dealer and service networks in the western region of India, our focus is now on the northern region.

Aftermarket services are important component of customer satisfaction, understanding this, we have invested in service vans in the important national highway routes. These vans will reach the breakdown points within two hours of fault reporting.

(This article first appeared in The Hindu dated Sept 7, 2015)