German companies rely on Africa

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Africa

German companies rely on Africa

Also, in many African countries, the economy is growing at present only a little. Nonetheless, two large German companies do business in Africa right now to expand.

For more than 60 years already sold Daimler vehicles in Africa – Mercedes sedans, but also trucks. In medium and heavy trucks, Daimler is the world market leader. But if you look in the annual report, and searches there according to the sales figures for the different regions of the world, runs Africa under the heading “Rest of the world”.

So far, the African countries, from Stuttgart, and Tokyo serves the Headquarters of the Japanese manufacturer, Mitsubishi Fuso, in which Daimler holds a majority stake. That should change now, says Wolfgang Bernhard, the Daimler Board of management for commercial vehicles is responsible, in a DW interview. “We simply cannot allow this continent only by the Chinese and the Indians will be served.”

Wolfgang Bernhard, Board Of Management Of Daimler Commercial Vehicles

Bernhard is currently on a multi-day trip to Africa. On Tuesday (09.02.2016) he has in the Kenyan capital Nairobi, a new regional centre for commercial vehicles opened on Wednesday (11.02.2016) follows another in South Africa’s capital, Pretoria.

Competition from China and India

“We see, increasingly, Indian and Chinese products on the streets,” says Bernhard. “To be successful, we need to be closer to the market, with our customers. We need to see the problems, improve our Service, our parts supply and improve the customer a complete package to offer. We can only do when we are there.”

The two regional centers of control in the future, sales and Service for commercial vehicles in 50 African countries. In the past year, Daimler has in the countries South of the Sahara a total of 11.400 vehicles sold, of which around half were Trucks of the Asian subsidiary Fuso.

“We are our market share and expect long-term increase in volumes,” says Bernhard, however, without concrete Numbers to call.

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Weak Economy

Daimler Nutzfahrzeugesparte is increasing its Engagement in Africa at a time when the other major emerging economies with large problems. The market in Brazil has in the past year, 50 percent lost, Indonesia has more than 30 percent lost,” says Bernhard. “We simply need more legs to stand on.”

Whether Daimler, the failures due to new business in Africa can compensate for, however, is questionable. For many sub-Saharan countries are economically succesful, because you by the current very low prices for raw materials and agricultural products, the revenue collapse. “So we get to a point at which it South Africa doesn’t go well,” says Bernhard.

The International monetary Fund (IMF) expected the least for the countries South of the Sahara, economic growth of 3.75 percent. Although this is significantly stronger than in most other regions of the world, however, weaker than in 2009, the year after the financial crisis. This year will see the growth again to 4.25 percent to tighten, says the IMF.

Great Expectations

Daimler Executive Bernhard is optimistic. “We believe that this continent with its rich natural resources and its Agrarreichtum and his large distances, is very much requirement.”

He had “great respect” ahead of the competition from China and India, whose cars are “priced very differently positioned,” says Bernhard. He is convinced, however, that Daimler, with its trucks and the Service and financing offers here can keep up.

The German industrial technology group Bosch has announced that its business in Africa to expand. So far, the company concentrated in ten afrikanschen locations on supplies for the automotive industry as well as inspection and security systems. In the future, wool, Bosch in 24 countries in the mining sector operate, said Michael Kloss, Executive Director for the Region of sub-Saharan Africa, on Monday (08.02.2016) on the world’s largest Bergbaukonferenz Mining Indaba in Cape town.

Investments in Angola, Nigeria, Mozambique, Congo, Ethiopia, and Zambia would be on the top of the list, so Kloss. A major hurdle, however, is the poor power supply in most countries. Even in South Africa, the headquarters of Bosch on the continent, would have the power outages in the past year to several weeks, and added the production is significantly lowered. “This Disadvantages”, says Kloss.

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Lack of energy

The goal of companies like Bosch, it was therefore, its own energy build up, to interruptions in the production to avoid. Mainly for generators, which is not only expensive, but also little eco-friendly.

“In Africa there is a lack of energy”, confirmed by the President of the African development Bank (ADB), Akinwumi Adesina. 645 million of the approximately one billion people in sub-Saharan Africa have no access to electricity, said Adesina in January at the world economic forum in Davos. There, he announced with several heads of state and government of African countries, a new energy Initiative with the aim of the capacity for power generation in the next years to 160 gigawatts to increase and millions of new power connections set up.

Currently the electricity supply in the whole of Africa, according to ADB only 150 gigawatts, South of the Sahara, there are even only 90 gigawatts. Due to poor maintenance, damaged pipes, Starvation, and theft is the amount of power actually available, even lower, experts say.