Vijayawada, April 10 Volvo Group India President and Managing Director Kamal Bali said on Friday that the ongoing conflict between Israel, the US, and Iran has not yet directly affected the automotive industry in the country, but that if supply chain constraints arise, the automotive industry, including his company, will be impacted.
Bali said he is unable to determine how the conflict is directly impacting the industry right now, noting that the impact may manifest with a slight delay.
"There is no direct impact right now. It's difficult to say how it's directly affecting things. The impact will occur with a slight delay. If the supply chain becomes constrained, it will be a problem for Volvo and the rest of the automotive industry," Bali told
However, he observed that if the conflict, which is currently under a conditional ceasefire lasting a fortnight between the US and Iran, ends now, then India as a country and the Indian industry as a whole will have the resources and resilience to withstand the damage thus far.
"Hopefully, if the war ends now, the damage will be limited, and we can overcome it. I think India as a country has the resilience to handle this. I hope it doesn't last much longer. If it ends now, I think we will be fine," said Bali, adding that if it continues, it could pose problems.
Furthermore, he said the war should end for many other reasons, and that the killing of people should stop.
Reflecting on the performance of Volvo Group India, which includes trucks, buses, construction equipment, Volvo Penta Financials, Volvo Penta, and Volvo Financial services, he said that the company is performing very well.
Highlighting that the company is in a strong position, Bali said that it is currently the third largest in its category, which includes a joint venture with Eicher.
Bali expressed his satisfaction with the impact that the Swedish automotive giant is having on the largest South Asian economy, especially with the technology it is bringing to the ecosystem, and the various other positive developments in the sector.
Furthermore, he reiterated Volvo's commitment to abandon fossil fuels, reaffirming the 2040 deadline for achieving the Net Zero goal.
Volvo will deploy technologies such as battery electric, hydrogen fuel cells, and H2I solutions, he said, to replace fossil fuels.
Reflecting on Andhra Pradesh, Bali said that it is a good automotive market for Volvo, although there are no specific plans for the southern state.
"We are constantly looking at the entire Indian market, various geographies, wherever we can make further inroads, wherever we think we can do more, we will continue," he said.
Moreover, Bali noted that Andhra Pradesh is a good market for Volvo in the mining sector and others.