Volvo Buses India Merges With VECV

13 August 2020, New Delhi: Volvo Buses India (VBI) and VE Commercial Vehicles Limited (VECV) have signed definitive agreements for the integration of former into later. These agreements will cover the manufacture, assembly, distribution and sale of Volvo buses in India. It will also cover the various rights forming part of the business. As a result of this, the bus making factory at Hosakote, Bengaluru as well as all the employees of the VBI will be transferred to VECV. Currently, VBI is a division of Volvo Group India Private Limited (VGIPL).

Siddhartha Lal, Chairman, VECV shared his views on this development and said, “This is a momentous occasion and testimony to a very strong relationship between Eicher Motors and Volvo Group. Over a period of time, the Volvo brand for buses in India has become synonymous with safety and comfort in both inter-city and intra-city public transportation, and we are extremely proud to have this iconic brand in our joint venture. With the integration of Volvo Buses India into VECV, we aim to shape the future of the Indian bus industry by offering the widest range of transport solutions to our customers.

Also sharing his views on this occasion was Håkan Agnevall, President of Volvo Bus Corporation. He said, “We are pleased with this development of Volvo Buses in India and see it as an opportunity to further build upon the successful JV Company – VECV.  By consolidating the operations of Volvo Buses India into VECV, we aim to further develop our bus business and strengthen our position in the Indian bus market. The new bus division will offer a full range of modern buses covering customer needs for heavy, medium and light-duty buses.”

According to sources, after the completion of this transaction, the bus business of both the companies will be merged into a new bus division that will be formed within VECV. The new bus division will offer buses under the brand names of Eicher and Volvo. This will allow the bus business to flourish in international markets by capitalizing on export market opportunities.

Further adding his comments on the merger, Vinod Aggarwal, Managing Director and CEO, VECV said, “VECV’s strong presence in the Indian bus market with Eicher branded buses will be complemented by Volvo Buses’ prominent position in the premium bus segment. With this integration, VECV will be able to leverage synergies in the areas of product development, purchasing and manufacturing with access to Volvo Group’s world-class technology in buses.”

Mr Kamal Bali, President & MD, VGIPL also added his views saying, “The Volvo Bus is a flag bearer of the Volvo Brand in India and we expect going forward this will be reinforced even further by our JV partner – VE Commercial Vehicles.” 

According to concerned officials, the transaction will be closed by November 2020 once all the conditions under the agreement are met.

About VE Commercial Vehicles Limited (VECV):

VECV, a JV between Eicher Motors Limited and Volvo Group has been in existence since July 2018. The company’s aim is to become a market leader in commercial transportation in India and other developing countries in the world. It has been involved in the sales and distribution business of Volvo trucks within India and Eicher’s components businesses. 

About Volvo Buses India:

The company footprints in India goes back to 2001. The company has over 7,000 of its Volvo buses on Indian roads as of 2019. These buses have covered over 3 billion kilometres so far. The company’s buses are well-known for providing the best travel experience in terms of safety, luxury and comfort to people. Over the last two decades, the company has introduced many new concepts in India such as the bus chassis concept, the low floor city bus concept, multi-axle coaches and India’s first commercialised hybrid bus, among a host of other technologies and concepts.