Volvo Group Trucks gains on sales in Iraq and Saudi

Volvo Group Trucks is on track to grow 30 per cent by 2015 in the region on the back of a construction boom in Iraq and a strong economy in Saudi Arabia.

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Volvo Group Trucks is on track to grow 30 per cent by 2015 in the region on the back of a construction boom in Iraq and a strong economy in Saudi Arabia.

The company operates 48 truck centres across the GCC.

"The key markets are Saudi Arabia and Iraq, [which is] where we expect the biggest growth," said Stefan Soenchen, the company's business team director in Iraq.

Volvo has opened two truck centres in Iraq since signing with local partner ZamZam General Group two years ago, and it has plans for a third, which is to open by the end of the year. The centres will be accompanied by the set-up of a truck assembly line in Babylon-Iskandariya, which will be one of the first in the country.

"The whole infrastructure was destroyed [after the invasion of Iraq]," he said. "So it is necessary to do huge investment over the next five up to 10 years to rebuild the whole country. That is then a normal growth from year to year."

In Saudi Arabia, the increase in business is thanks to organic growth in the economy, he added.

"The whole market is booming and the request for heavy transport equipment is increasing year by year. The second point is that we established ourselves more and more and more," said Mr Soenchen.

Other important markets in the region include the UAE, Qatar and Oman. In the UAE, business was difficult in 2009 and 2010 following the financial crisis, but it has now recovered, he added.