Neoplan and Volvo bus producers’ investment decisions starting to pay off

Neoplan Polska and Volvo bus producers say they are looking ahead toward prosperous years as strategic decisions they made two years ago to invest some $40 million - $50 million each for the expansion of bus assembly activities is starting to bear fruit. In January Neoplan won a zl.200 million tender for the delivery of 165 buses for the city of Warsaw and is due shortly to sign another contract for 148 buses for Latvia. „It is one of the biggest contracts in the company's history,” said Neoplan Polska head Krzysztof Olszewski. Volvo's biggest European factory, located in Wroclaw, last year sold 80% of its production abroad, primarily to Germany, Austria, Italy and Finland. This year the two are looking to increase production significantly to 1,200 buses per year, with the objective of making larger inroads into foreign markets through increased exports. Last year buses sold on the Polish market totalled 566. (Prawo i Gospodarka, March 10-11, pp.1,2,4)J.K.