Ashok Leyland sees pick up in demand for tippers and ICVs
Truck and bus maker Ashok Leyland has said it expects pick up in demand for tippers and ICVs (intermediate commercial vehicles) due to the Centre’s infrastructure push and growth in e-commerce, respectively, while outlining its preparedness for BS-VI, for which the Hinduja flagship has spent about ₹500 crore.
“In the next few months, the demand for tippers and ICVs should be good. But demand for multi-axle vehicles continues to be sluggish. The capacity that got generated because of the axle load norms is getting absorbed. But it will take another year or so to get absorbed completely,” Anuj Kathuria, Chief Operating Officer of Ashok Leyland, said here.
The demand for tippers was subdued for the past 7-8 months due to various factors. Now, new projects being mobilised for the government through a strong spending plan. Also, coal shipments have improved. All these things will help revive the demand for tippers, he added.
The demand for ICVs has not been bad since it was not impacted by axle load norms. Also, the hub-and-spoke model has matured, while the boom in e-commerce has also helped. Thus, the company expects this segment to show improvement in sales going forward.
Ashok Leyland’s BS-IV inventory is in manageable level and there is nothing alarming about it. “We are not in a position to push for a clearance sale of BS-IV vehicles,” he added.
For the current fiscal, Kathuria expects the medium and heavy commercial vehicle volumes at about two lakh units when compared with 372,000 units in 2018-19.
BS-VI vehicles
Meanwhile, the company has started seeding its BS-VI trucks ahead of BS-VI emission norms that will kick in on April 1. It has delivered its first batch of ICVs to its customers in Delhi-NCR region where BS-VI fuel is available for more than a year.
The company plans to roll out BS-VI variants of tippers, tractor-trailers and other vehicles gradually. But he declined to disclose the possible price increase for BS-VI vehicles as the company has not firmed up the same.
The company has spent ₹500 crore in BS-VI preparation, including new platforms and its own new technology – iGen6, which will be a combination of its own iEGR (intelligent exhaust gas recirculation) technology, which was used in its BS IV trucks, and SCR (selective catalytic reduction) system.
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