Holland Car launched Ahadu Bus at a ceremony at the Millennium Hall on Saturday, October 16, 2010, marking the fifth anniversary of the company in the presence of President Girma W. Giorgis; Tadesse Haile, state minister of Trade and Industry (MoTI); and Getachew Mengiste, state minister of Transport and Communications (MoTC).
As 60pc of its parts are manufactured locally, the bus marks a departure from the company’s usual practice, according to Tadesse Tessema (Eng), chief executive officer (CEO) of the company. To date, the cars which the company assembled relied on imports for 90pc of its parts.
The bus, which is 16 metres long, 2.5 metres wide, and 3.5 metres high, has 65 seats and can carry 250 sitting and standing passengers, according to Ermias Woldeselassie, marketing manager of the company.
It was assembled at Holland Car’s new plant in Burayu Town, in the Oromia Special Zone.
The bus, designed in collaboration with Motio BV Design and Engineering Enterprise, a Dutch company, is durable and suitable for all kinds of roads, the company claimed.
Holland Car plans to export the bus, according to Ermias.
“We have studied the market and expect to sell 500 to 700 buses in Ethiopia alone,” Ermias said. “We guess that Anbessa City Bus will be one of our major customers.”
Holland Car is developing a new plant, dubbed Cassiopeia, for the assembly of commercial cars such as pickups, according to Tefera Adefris, deputy finance head of the company.
Holland Car was established as a joint venture (JV) between Tadesse Tessema and Trento BV Engineering, a Dutch Company. It is based in Modjo, 65km from Addis Abeba, on a 20,000sqm plot. To date, the company has sold 1,200 cars under the Abay, Awash, Shebelle, and Tekeze brands, according to the company’s website.
Source : Fortune
1 comment
funny looking bus