Daimler India Commercial Vehicles looks to drive in 14 models in 2024

'Bus market may see around 25-30 per cent growth, truck sales to remain flat this year'

Driven by a record 39 per cent growth in domestic business in 2023, Daimler India Commercial Vehicles (DICV) has lined up 14 new launches in 2024, in rigid, construction and mining categories.

The company expects truck sales to remain flat this year at around 350,000 units, compared to 351,000 units in 2023. On the other hand, the bus market is likely to see around 25-30 per cent growth from 41,000 units in 2023 to 50,000-55,000 units in 2024, said Satyakam Arya, Managing Director and chief executive officer, DICV.

“We will still continue to grow very fast. This strong growth will be seen for the next five to seven years,” he added.

The company is coming up with 14 new products following a massive rise in sales in 2023.

DICV’s domestic truck and bus sales grew by 39 per cent and revenue grew by 21 per cent over 2022. Bus volumes too doubled during the year moving up by 107 per cent.

The German major’s Indian arm also posted a 13 per cent rise in cumulative sales (domestic and exports) during CY 2023. Its parts business also grew by 21 per cent over 2022. 

“More than half of the world's population will go to elections this year. The geopolitical environment continues to be uncertain, global supply chain issues and impact of AI on business is also likely to be there for the industry,” Arya added. 

The company, which achieved a CO 2 neutrality of 84 per cent in 2023 in manufacturing, has set a target of extending it to 90 per cent in 2024. In terms of sustainability, another target set by the company is to have 64 per cent zero emission trucks by 2030 and raising it to 100 per cent by 2039.

“Our best-ever sales and financial growth, since inception (2012), was spearheaded by excellent demand for our tipper and tractor trailer product lines, which grew 53 per cent and 79 per cent respectively, compared to CY 2022. A slew of strategic initiatives also helped us take informed decisions on costs, tackle headwinds effectively and sharpen our focus on key areas of business,” he added. 

The company said that it is going to come up with all its MY24 BharatBenz heavy-duty trucks in the coming months. The first to be launched will be the BharatBenz Rigid range, followed by trucks with the newly introduced automated manual transmission (AMT) and the all new Construction and Mining truck heavy-duty range. 

“The factors that are expected to impact sales in 2024, include regulatory trends revolving around safety, switch to alternate fuel and scrappage policy, among others,” Arya added.

The record business performance was driven by multiple initiatives that DICV undertook in 2023, like meeting its target of establishing 350 sales and service locations across India and expanding BharatBenz’s (a division of Daimler Truck AG) range of products in new markets.