While MAN Truck & Bus South Africa’s (MTBSA’s) bus division saw substantial gains in 2014, the same is not true for the local arm of the German company’s truck business.

MTBSA sold around 1 700 trucks in 2013, with sales declining to around 1 575 units in 2014, as reported to the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa. Bus sales in 2014 reached 490 units, compared with 391 new vehicles sold in 2013.

“Our bus division made significant inroads last year into new passenger transit methodologies, particularly the bus rapid transit (BRT) market, with the introduction of 120 A84 Lion’s City buses to the City of Tshwane, as well as our pioneering work with Buscor on securing permits for 12 new biarticulated bustrains to operate in Mpumalanga,” says MTBSA MD Geoff du Plessis.

These biarticulated buses are 27 m long, and can carry up to 138 passengers.

“The year 2014 was clearly challenging for our truck division. Despite securing a few significant orders, we did lose some market share. However, the fact that there was confirmation that we have the right solutions and that we are providing them on a continuous basis, bodes well for us in 2015,” adds Du Plessis.

“Our strong position in the bus market and our [ability] to sustain market leadership in this segment on the strength of chassis produced at our Pinetown assembly plant and bus bodies at our Olifantsfontein factory also bode well for us moving forward.”

Du Plessis says MAN’s sales figures in 2015 show “moderate growth” in the segments in which the company competes.

“Despite these increases in sales volumes, we are cautious in our outlook, anticipating a flat market, with sales volumes in both the truck and bus segments reaching much the same levels they did during 2014.”

Du Plessis says challenges in the domestic truck market include pressure on commodity markets and the rand, as well as slowing economic growth, owing mainly to uncertainty around continuous electricity supply and a general lack of business confidence.

The bus industry is also under pressure, predominantly owing to the lack of adequate State subsidies to support contracts that are required for the transportation of people, he notes.

He says the only bus transport projects currently securing State funding seem to be those using the BRT acronym.

“This has an impact on new-vehicle sales . . . despite the impressive resurgence of new bus sales volumes over the last 12 months.”