Optare gears up for global expansion.

Optare, the UK bus manufacturer, controlled by the Hinduja's Ashok Leyland recently outlined plans to expand and roll out its product globally, as it unveiled a new double-decker bus for the London market.

Speaking ahead of the unveiling of the light-weight fuel efficient double-decker, specifically designed for the London market, Ashok Leyland MD Vinod Desari said he hoped Optare, in which the group first invested in 2010, acquiring a majority stake in 2012, to start turning a profit or break even point in the current year.

New products such as the double-decker, released recently, would help the group further its strategy of expanding across Britain and into its newer markets such as Western Europe, the Middle East, South Africa and Australia, he said. The group also plans to bring Optare buses to the Indian market.

The company’s focus on low carbon vehicles - electric, hybrid and lightweight - and improving economic conditions in Britain and Europe have helped increase demand, with the current order book for 2014, 80 per cent up on the previous year. The company is projecting sales to grow by 60 per cent in the next three years.


HBL