Scania expands in Lithuania
Scania expands in Lithuania Vilskana becomes wholly-owned importer Scania is taking over Vilskana UAB, Lithuania's leading Scania dealership, with immediate effect. The new subsidiary, which is also taking over the name and all the staff, will be based in the newly inaugurated premises in Vilnius which will also serve as the regional centre for Scania sales in Lithuania. Anders Grundströmer, who heads Scania's operations in Scandinavia, the Baltic states and the CIS states, says that Scania is now better equipped than ever before to meet market demands in Lithuania. "Scania's sales operation in Lithuania started in 1992, and we inaugurated our first dealer premises in Kaunas two years later. Last year marked the opening of the new office in Vilnius and now, with the formation of the new company, we have gathered our resources to offer our customers full service, from truck sales through service, maintenance and repairs to parts sales." The customer base has expanded steadily. Scania secured 9 percent of the Lithuanian market in 1997 and the figure so far this year points to a market share of between 14 and 15 percent. The total market for heavy trucks in Lithuania amounted to 400 units in 1997, with preliminary figures for this year in the region of 500 trucks. The Lithuanian transport market is dominated by haulage firms operating on international routes. There is a definite growth in local transportation requirements in segments such as heavy timber transportation, distribution, municipal services such as refuse handling and road maintenance. For this reason, Scania will open a facility in Klaipeda in early 1999. For further information, please contact Ulf Söderström, tel. +46 8 553 81044, mobile +46 70 680 9595. Scania is one of the world's leading manufacturers of trucks and buses for heavy transport applications, and of industrial and marine engines. With 23,800 employees and production facilities in Europe and Latin America, Scania is one of the most profitable companies in its sector. In 1997, turnover totalled SEK 39,700 million and income after financial items SEK 2,800 million. Scania products are marketed in about 100 countries worldwide and approximately 95% of total production is sold outside Sweden. ------------------------------------------------------------ Please visit http://www.bit.se for further information The following files are available for download: http://www.bit.se/bitonline/1998/12/18/19981218BIT00310/bit0001.doc http://www.bit.se/bitonline/1998/12/18/19981218BIT00310/bit0002.pdf