Traton owned, Swedish based Global truck and bus brand, Scania has revealed some strong results for the second quarter of the calendar year ending on 30 June citing increased customer demand and a growing services business, with the company saying it continues to invest for the future.
Scania revealed it performed strongly with its truck order intake increasing significantly, while actual deliveries rose and service revenues continued to increase compared with the same period last year.
The company said it reflects the strength of its customer offering and the trust placed in the brand as a long-term partner, saying that it achieved this against a backdrop of macro-economic and geopolitical uncertainty, and an increasingly competitive global market iwhich it said was especially encouraging given those circumstances.
Traton CEO Christian Levin said that Scania customers value not only its products, but the complete offering that surrounds them, and particularly so in uncertain times.
“I am proud of how the organisation came together during the quarter to overcome many of the delivery flow challenges we faced at the beginning of the year, enabling us to increase deliveries to customers,” the Traton boss said.
” At the same time, we challenged our cost base and improved efficiency across the business, with these efforts giving us the financial strength and flexibility to continue investing in the technologies, digital capabilities and industrial footprint that will shape the future of transport,” Levin said.
“The performance across our business areas was solid during the quarter, and in the truck business, market conditions remained mixed across regions, while many customers were cautious about new investments, underlying replacement demand continued to support several European markets,” he said.
“Scania’s truck order intake increased significantly, mainly driven by strong activity in Brazil as well as the the continued ramp-up of the Next Era in China.
“Early customer feedback has been positive regarding fuel efficiency, reliability, comfort and total cost of ownership. 
Discussions with major fleet customers are advancing well, and in addition, Scania’s global truck range produced in China is generating new business across a wider range of applications such as firefighting chassis and TIR prime movers,” Levin added
The Traton CEO pointed out that its truck deliveries increased compared with the same period last year, while its new Scania Super powertrain, including the latest Super 11-litre engine has been launched globally and that it has been very well received by customers.
He said that the company’s bus and coach offerings continued to operate in a challenging market environment with order intake remaining subdued with continued market uncertainty and high fuel prices, although its bus and coach deliveries were stable.
He also cited the fact that order intake across its In Power Solutions division declined as a result of customers bringing forward purchases ahead of the transition to the new engine platform, although eliveries increased compared with the same period last year.
“Our services business continued to perform strongly during the quarter, particularly in an uncertain environment, where customers are increasingly prioritising vehicle uptime, with operational efficiency and predictable operating costs, reinforcing the value of our integrated customer offering,” said Levin.
The report showed that during the quarter it continued to strengthen its contracted services offering through the expansion of Services 360 in Europe, which now including battery-electric vehicles and rolling fleets.
“Our financial services business also performed well during the quarter, continuing to support customers with flexible financing solutions and more than a third of new trucks sold are financed through Scania’s financial services,” Levin commented.
“Together, our vehicles, services and financing solutions form an integrated customer offering that helps maximise uptime, improve operational efficiency and support the transition to sustainable transport, he said.
Levin pointed to higher truck volumes, together with continued strength in the services business, which he said had increased the company’s revenue during the quarter.
The organisation’s profitability improved, supported by higher truck volumes, a favourable product mix and a continued growth in its services business. with these factors more than offsetting increased R&D investments and the expenses related to the ramp-up of its Chinese production site.
“I am encouraged by how the organisation continued to challenge our cost base and improve efficiency across the business,” Levin said.
“We improved production overhead, product costs and administrative expenses, and this was achieved despite continued inflationary pressure on material and energy costs, which together showed that ongoing efficiency initiatives are translating into tangible bottom-line improvements, creating room for vital strategic investments,” The Scania supremo added.
“We continue to challenge our cost base and improve efficiency across the business, and these efforts give us the financial strength and flexibility to keep investing in the technologies, digital capabilities and industrial footprint that will shape the future of transport,” he said.
The report showed that supporting the shift to electrified transport is one of its highest strategic priorities, and to accelerate the shift, it’s crucial that we continue to strengthen its battery-electric offering and the industrial capabilities needed to support it and it achieved both during the quarter.
“Although battery-electric demand remains at relatively low levels, I was encouraged to see activity increasing across Europe, supported by customer interest and public incentives,” he said.
“Scania offers one of the industry’s broadest battery-electric portfolios today, which is complemented by comprehensive depot and destination charging solutions, digital services and financial solutions,” Levin said.
Levin cited one example in Scania’s Megawatt Charging System, which he said was a technology that rapidly reduces charging time for heavy vehicles.
“During the quarter, the system became available for customers to order for the first time, alongside a new under-cab battery module that extends vehicle range without compromising payload, and together, these developments enabled us to support more transport applications, larger fleet transitions and a broader range of customer needs than ever before,” he said.
Levin pointed to the the strong offering is already translating into increased customer commitments, and that during the quarter, the company entered into a landmark agreement with Nordic chemical logistics company Wibax to deliver 105 battery-electric trucks together with fleet optimisation services, which is one of the largest electric truck orders in the EU to date.
“It is an encouraging sign that parts of the market are moving beyond pilot projects towards larger-scale fleet electrification,” Levin said.
“Supporting the electric transition also requires continued investment in our industrial system, and during the quarter, we announced a major investment in our production site at Angers in France, which significantly expanded our battery-electric production capacity in Europe,” the tartan boss said.
“This investment will ensure we are ready to increase production as demand grows while strengthening the resilience and flexibility of Scania’s global industrial system, and together with our production footprint in Latin America and China, it enables us to remain close to customers in our key markets,” he said.
“We are continuing to invest with confidence because we believe electrification is the future of transport, while at the same time, achieving the pace of transition that customers and society expect will require the right enabling conditions,” he added.
“Continued expansion of charging infrastructure, predictable long-term regulatory frameworks and policies that support investment in zero-emission transport remain essential to accelerate the shift and only by working together across industry and society, can we unlock the full potential of sustainable transport,” Levin added.
Levin said that Scania’s transport solutions are also contributing to building a more resilient society , and that throughout the company’s history, it has played an important role in supporting essential societal functions, and that he was proud that it is continuing to do so today.
“During the quarter, we unveiled two products designed for defence logistics, a Protected Cab solution providing blast and ballistic protection, and a 4×4 hybrid-electric truck that is now being evaluated by the Swedish Armed Forces,” Levin said proudly.
“As with our commercial customers, our partnerships with defence and emergency services extend well beyond delivering vehicles, and so through comprehensive service agreements, we provide the long-term support needed to ensure operational readiness whenever it matters most,” he said.
