NEWS FROM THE MONTH

HUGE BUS ORDER FOR ASHOK LEYLAND IN UAE / NEW CEO FOR HALA / STELLANTIS LAUNCHES PRE-OWNED SERVICE IN AFRICA / AMAZON TARGETS EMIRATI WOMEN RECRUITS

NETWORK

Tadweer collected almost 2mn tons of waste in Abu Dhabi during H1 2022

ABU DHABI WASTE FIRM REVEALS THAT IT ALSO SIGNED FOUR OPERATIONAL CONTRACTS VALUED AT $64 MILLION DURING THE FIRST HALF OF 2022

FLEET

Abu Dhabi Waste Management Centre (Tadweer) processed more than 1,860,000 tons of waste, including 88,382 tons of medical and hazardous waste, and handled 50,000 pest control requests during the first half of 2022.

This comes as part of the Centre’s continuous efforts to build an efficient integrated waste management and pest control system in Abu Dhabi, said the firm.

During the first half of 2022, Tadweer successfully diverted 34% of all waste in Abu Dhabi away from landfills, and diverted 50% of waste resulting from demolition and construction operations, 93% of hazardous waste, 3% of green waste, and 6% of animal waste away from landfills. This comes in line with Tadweer’s efforts to support the UAE’s vision for 2030.

The Centre’s achievements during the first half of 2022 included signing operational contracts for pest control services and reducing disease vector pests. In addition to adopting the electronic approvals system for No Objection Certificates (NOC) in Abu Dhabi, as well as organizing awareness campaigns across the Emirate.

His Excellency Dr Salem Al Kaabi, acting director-feneral of the Abu Dhabi Waste Management Centre (Tadweer) said: “The achievements realized during the first half of 2022 are a testament to the Centre’s efficacy and its pivotal position in building a sustainable system for waste management and pest control in Abu Dhabi, in order to maintain Abu Dhabi’s cleanliness and aesthetics.

“This is in line with the strategic objectives of the Centre to ensure value-added services are provided to the community.”

“The Centre’s highly skilled teams will continue their efforts to finding more solutions that realize sustainability by preserving natural resources, creating an aware society that contributes to reducing waste, and converting waste into an economic resource for the Emirate, all in order to create a safe, healthy, and sustainable environment,” he added.

TADWEER SAYS IT MADE 1,200,000T OF RECYCLED GRAVEL FROM DEMOLITION AND CONSTRUCTION WASTE IN SIX MONTHS

HALA DRAFTS CAREEM GM KHALED NUSEIBEH AS ITS NEW CEO

MOBILITY

Hala, the joint-venture between Dubai’s public transport authority, the RTA, and Uber subsidiary Careem has promoted Khaled Nuseibeh as CEO.

Nuseibeh has served as general manager for Emerging Markets and GCC at Careem for five years. According to Hala, his appointed to CEO will see the unique venture realise a new set of goals for popular taxi ride-hailing service.

Hala officially launched in August 2019 and a month later celebrated a milestone of the one millionth trip booked.

In his previous role Nuseibeh successfully led nine key market launches including Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, Jordan, Oman, Palestine, Lebanon, Algeria and Morocco.

During this time, he prompted unprecedented growth for ridehailing in Qatar, Kuwait and Bahrain, while achieving the highest reliability levels in Morocco and accelerated the Jordanian taxi business to the highest market share value. Under his leadership, Careem Qatar grew 5 folds in 12 months and achieved top service levels across Careem, said Hala.

“I’m very fortunate to be joining Hala after witnessing all the significant milestones that the team has achieved since launch,” said Nuseibeh.

“I’m very excited to lead this young and vibrant team at this pivotal moment to continue Hala’s success story and unlock its full potential through enhanced customer experience and reliability, while continuously progressing our value to all our riders and Captains.”

EMIRATI WOMEN LEAD AMAZON’S NEW RECRUITS

STELLANTIS LAUNCHES AFRICAN USED START-UP

FLEET

Amazon has described its new intake of new Emirati hires, with many of these roles filled by Emirati women, as reinforcing its commitment to diversity and inclusion while contributing to the UAE’s national Emiratisation plan.

Unveiled to coincide with Emirati Women’s Day which aims to celebrate the dreams and achievements of women in the UAE, the world’s leading online retailed said it continues to invest in UAE talent through reskilling, and upskilling its workforce.

“We are grateful to live in a country where there are so many impactful national and corporate initiatives to drive change. We believe that diversity unlocks different perspectives, enabling us to innovate and serve the evolving needs of our customers,” said Ronaldo Mouchawar, VP, MENA, Amazon.

“With Emirati Women’s Day also being commemorated this week, and our ongoing commitment to diversity, we are proud to see so many Emirati women take on roles within Amazon. I look forward to seeing what the future has in store as we continue to build it together.”

Noof Alsayed, Marketplace Account Manager, Middle East and North Africa, Amazon, added: “While I have always been intrigued by the variety of roles offered by Amazon, most women are not aware of the breadth of opportunities available within the company.

“I am proud to represent Emirati women in such a fast-growing sector and thank the UAE government for driving this vision to ensure growth of our talent. I can’t wait to start.”

PRE-OWNED

Stellantis has stepped up its used car presence in Africa with the launch of Auto24 activities in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, in conjunction with online marketplace Africar Group.

Auto24 brings new solutions ensuring transactions are conducted in a transparent and secure way, explained the firms in a statement. Stellantis has also taken a stake in Africar Group to create Auto24.

Operating in more than 40 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, Africar Group is Africa’s leading online automotive marketplace network. During the last five years, it has enabled over 25 million car buyers and sellers to trade used cars through its online channels.

“After more than five years of working with automotive manufacturers, distributors and other key players in the industry, we have developed a class leading, multi country digital automotive solution across Sub-Saharan Africa,” said Axel Peyriere, CEO, Africar Group said.

“Auto24 is being launched with the aim to buttress the confidence of African customers in the used vehicle market. A great challenge that will allow to have a secure, convenient, trustworthy and enjoyable buying or selling used vehicle experience.”

In Middle East and Africa, Stellantis is the third OEM aiming to become the leading automotive group in the region with over 1 million new vehicles sold per year by 2030.

SANY SENDS TRUCK BATCHES TO JORDAN CLIENT

GETRENTACAR EXPANDS INTO TURKISH MARKET

FLEET

SANY has revealed that it recently delivered a batch of its C10generation truck-mounted concrete pumps and lightweight truck mixers to what’s billed as ‘a key account’ in Jordan. According to the firm, over 20 units were delivered, all complying with EURO III emission standards. The delivery is said to come on the back of a tour organised by the client last year, where they visited China to find a suitable concrete machinery manufacturer.

SANY pump trucks are outfitted with X-shaped outriggers, which are said to offer enhanced terrain adaptability, increased structural strength and outrigger flexibility compared to traditional swing-out outriggers.

“Its reduced fuel consumption of up to 5-10% lower than average is another highlight of the C10 pump truck, especially in light of surging oil prices,” says the manufacturer.

It added, “The SANY concrete machines that were delivered are equipped with Volvo chassis, a brand with a robust local spare parts supply. Despite a long boom stretching to 62m, shock absorption technology prevents the boom end from excessive shaking.”

In addition, SANY concrete pumps use oil pumps with a large displacement, high-capacity hoppers of up to 700L and wide delivery cylinders, reducing the risk of pipe blockages.

MOBILITY

Following the successful startup of operations in Dubai earlier this year, car-sharing service GetRentacar.com has now opened up to the Turkish market. The move provides more attractive offers and a more convenient procedure to get a car for a period of time, the USbased firm said in a statement.

GetRentacar is one of the world’s biggest car-sharing marketplaces, enabling users to rent cars from a community of local car owners. According to the firm, the core advantage of the innovative service depends on cutting-edge algorithms.

Enhanced by AI technologies, the platform provides passengers with the offers that will be most suitable to them. Using the service, travelers can choose the location and date of their future journeys and set the price they are ready to pay for rent and the type of car they need. The offer is personalised for every customer so they can find the one that suits them best, it explained.

It added: “Another good thing about the service is its internationality. Turkey is one of the world’s top travel destinations and the country is getting more and more popular every year.

“Even with the influx of travelers from around the globe, the language barrier should not be a huge problem for users of GetRentacar.com. The interface is available in 20+ languages besides English.

“Communication with the car owner is carried out through the online client service, so any negotiations are simple and mediated.”

FARNEK SENDS 4.6T OF BASIC FOOD AND ESSENTIALS TO 131 SRI LANKAN FAMILIES

FLEET

Farnek has said that 4.6 metric tonnes of basic food stuff and other essentials have been dispatched to the families of 131 Sri Lankan employees. The humanitarian project was said to be initiated by the company’s staff welfare committee in light of Sri Lanka’s ongoing economic crisis.

The island nation is currently suffering from on of its worst political and economic crisis in recent memory, which has left many families in the country struggling to survive.

Sri Lanka relies on imports and with the country’s foreign currency reserves plummeting 99% to just $50mn since 2019, buying imported goods is extremely challenging, pushing up the price of domestic goods, Farnek noted.

According to the UK-based news service the BBC, people have been struggling with daily power cuts and shortages of basics such as fuel, food and medicines. Inflation is said to be running at more than 50%.

“This humanitarian drive was initiated by our staff welfare team, to the delight of our Sri Lankan employees. The situation over there is heartbreaking and we wanted to do something practical to help ordinary families that are struggling on a daily basis,” commented Markus Oberlin, CEO, Farnek.

INSIDE THIS ISSUE: RECAP ON THE FLEET AND MOBILITY SUMMIT, HOW TOTALENERGIES IS SMOOTHING THE ENERGY TRANSITION AND MUCH MORE!

EMIRATES TRANSPORT AND STS GROUP BOOST FOR ASHOK LEYLAND

FLEET

Ashok Leyland has revealed that its $50 million state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Ras Al Khaimah will assemble the 1,400 buses to fulfill its largest ever order to school transporters in the UAE.

The only certified local bus making facility in the entire GCC and Emirates Transport and STS Group are among those due to receive the 55-seater Falcon buses and 32-seater Oyster buses once built.

The total fleet deal for the GCC made buses has been bagged by Ashok Leyland’s UAE distribution partners, Swaidan Trading - Al Naboodah Group, added the world’s fourth largest bus-maker in the world.

“We are very happy to receive these orders, and this is a historic moment for Ashok Leyland in UAE,” said Dheeraj Hinduja, executive chairman, Ashok Leyland. “This is a testament to the reliability, durability and robustness of our buses and reaffirms the faith that our customers have on our buses being the safest for transporting school students.

He added: “These products are made in the UAE assembly plant. The product concepts originate in the UAE, the designs are done by our engineers in UAE and are assembled in the factory in UAE, with more than 55% of parts sourced in UAE. It will be apt to call it “The Emirati Bus”- Made in UAE, for the GCC.”

Ashok Leyland, which is also the world’s tenth largest truck-maker wants to be considered a transnational transportation and mobility solutions leader. Hinduja added that the firm’s recently announced electric vehicle company, Switch Mobility, based out of UK, will help it fulfil its aspiration of providing zero carbon emission transportation.

“We see huge opportunities for growth through Switch’s expansion in UAE and the GCC and look forward to launch our electric vehicles in these markets soon.”

The Ras Al Khaimah plant has an installed capacity of 4,000 buses a year. Ever since its start in 2008, Ashok Leyland has rolled out 25,500 buses from the plant so far.

Over the years, the plant has generated abundant economic and social value. More than 7000 establishments in GCC own an Ashok Leyland product, transporting 1.8 Mn passengers every day. The company has expanded the portfolio and launched light commercial vehicles “Partner Truck” and “Gazl Buses”. The UAE plant also exports buses to African countries.

Amandeep Singh, Head- International Operations noted that Ashok Leyland is one of the fastest growing brands in the Middle East with a growing market presence in UAE.

“Our lowest total cost of ownership and strong after-sales support differentiates us and has helped us win these orders. We are excited with the growth we are seeing in the UAE economy and the opportunity it provides. We have aggressive plans to further enhance our portfolio in LCV space. You will hear from us shortly.”