KAMAZ AND VECTRA JOIN HANDS TO TAP BIG TICKET DEFENCE TRUCK MARKET
By Bulbul Singh
14 May 09. India has another major truck manufacturer eyeing the
increasing military market here for specialist vehicles. The civil heavy duty trucks manufacturer, Vectra Group has set up a
joint venture with Russian truck maker Kaaz to produce a wide range
of heavy duty trucks in India .
The new joint venture will be based in the southern Indian
city of Hosur, where Kamaz Inc. and the Vectra group, whose Indian operations make trucks, will collaborate to set up a plant for the heavy duty trucks, beginning with an initial investment of $13
million.
“The new venture will further make variety of military trucks
and the new venture has a target to reach the $1 billion mark by 2011,” said a senior official of the Vectra group.
India’s defence forces need around 5000 heavy duty trucks in six variants for various uses including artillery, armour, and air defence systems. Indian defence forces will need to buy trucks for mobile air defence systems, land-based missiles, land-based cruise missiles like the BrahMos, mobile air defence systems, 155mm guns carriers, armour lifters etc. These trucks can also be used for
anti-ballistic missile systems like the Prithvi, Agni and also
the Prithvi Air Defence anti-ballistic missile system.
An Indian army official said, “The requirements for heavy duty trucks are for tank transporters, logistics vehicle carrying radar shelters, missile launchers, recovery cranes, crash fire tender and general service role for the army.
The Vectra-Kamaz venture will fulfill the Indian military
needs to a large extent; the two partners have decided to
collaborate keeping in mind the defence offset market for the
Indian defence forces. In 2005 the Indian government made it mandatory for overseas defence contractors to buy equipment from the Indian defence industry whenever their contracted order exceeds $60 million.
Up to 30 per cent of the total contract order will need to be executed in defence offsets and the Offset market is estimated at around $10 billion in the next five-to-seven years.
“The defence offset market is the prime driver of the Kamaz-Vectra collaboration in India.” said a senior executive of the Vectra group.
“The Vectra-Kam venture will also cater to the military market
of tatra trucks in the region.” added the executive. Currently,
Indian military needs are met by Tata Motors, Volvo India Ltd, Ashok Leyland, Vectra and the state-owned Bharat Earth Movers Limited (BEML) Ltd.
One of the subsidiaries of Vectra group, Tatra Vectra Motors
Limited (TVML), formerly known as Tatra Trucks India Limited, which
is a joint venture between Tatra a.s. of Czech Republic and the Vectra
group have been the major suppliers of trucks requirements to the Indian defence forces, including the SMERCH Multiple Rocket Launcher.
One of the major competitors of Kamaz and Vectra will be the
state-owned BEML, which is supplying over 1500 trucks to the Indian defence forces. BEML has already tied up with Omnipol of the erstwhile Czechoslovakia to produce trucks.