The Indian commercial vehicle industry is expected to grow leaps and bounds over the coming years, and when the real impact of the Vehicle Scrappage Policy kicks in, it could lead to unprecedented growth says Satyakam Arya, MD & CEO, Daimler India Commercial Vehicles.
Responding to a question on the opportunity that the Vehicle Scrappage Policy unfolds, Arya says, “We have not yet seen the real growth impact of the Scrappage Policy, I believe over the next 7-8 by 2030 the industry will come close to about 450,000 to 500,000 wholesales, which is a single-digit percentage. If the scrappage policy becomes really effective this could be a double-digit growth. We have not yet factored that because we are still awaiting the real impact of the same.”
The Daimler India boss believes that this trend will continue to drive at least a high single-digit growth for the overall commercial vehicle industry in India. “People have realised BS6 emissions norms will be here for the next few years and they are replacing their fleets with the latest technology. In addition to emission tech, we have also upgraded our products to offer better TCO,” shares Arya.
M&HCV trucks parc in India to be around 17 million units
According to him, 2022 was a record year for the German CV maker in terms of sales, exports, and revenue generated in India. “2023 is turning out to be even better than 2022.”
The Medium & Heavy Commercial Vehicle segment has grown by 10 percent, and Daimler India has grown 45 per cent in the trucking space (albeit a low-base). Arya adds that the bus segment is recovering and “actually doubled” in the first 6 months of 2023. He points out that there is a strong correlation between the economic growth of a country and the CV industry. In the Indian context, this is a strong positive. The investment towards infrastructure is also auguring well for the CV segment. He estimates that heavy and medium-duty trucks in India could anywhere be between 15-17 million units that will reach their mandated lifespan in the coming few years.
“Basically there is still a huge replacement demand to be fulfilled. This replacement is consistent enough to give us at least a decade of growth for the commercial vehicle industry and we are preparing for that,” he concludes.
