To sustain its leadership position across the country, Toyota Nigeria Limited (TNL) has put in place cost management measures, boost its after sales services and ensure good relationship with all stakeholders.
Reviewing 2017 first quarter activities in the Nigerian market, Managing Director of TNL, Mr Kunle Ade-Ojo, explained that the company is also giving priority to the type of vehicles imported into the country.
According to Ade-Ojo, Nigerian auto firms imported only 350 new vehicles into the country in the first quarter of 2017, indicating a drop of 90 per cent compared with 3,500 imported during same period last year.
Speaking at an interactive session with Journalists in Lagos, Ade-Ojo, blamed the development on forex and economic challenges, adding that instability in foreign exchange contributes to high duty on imported vehicles, which also caused increase in selling prices of vehicles.
Comparing statistics of vehicular sales between last year and the period in review, figures indicates that only 2,000 units have been sold in Q1 2017, against 5,500 units sold same period last year.
Ade-Ojo, who spoke on a range of issues relating to the sector said the total forecast of vehicular sales for the year was between 8,000 and 10,000 vehicles.
Making reference to TNL, he said the company still had the lion’s share of 43 per cent of the 2015 imports, and 38 per cent of 2016 vehicle imports.
Ade-Ojo said: “The devaluation of naira which caused scarcity of forex affected businesses and importation last year. For instance, in the first quarter of the year, the United States dollar was just about N200, and by the end of the year, it had doubled.”
He explained that this doubled the prices of vehicles in the space of one year, which he said a lot of businesses could not afford to pay for the increase, given that they were also struggling to survive.
He said: “A lot of businesses could not pay for the increase. Many companies retrenched and had to prioritise what they will spend their little funds more.
“It used to be every four year companies change their staff cars but has been increased to five years and above. Interest rates have gone up on interest rates for doing business.
“Dollar is scarce and same for naira. And while the Central Bank of Nigeria is saying it is releasing money, banks are saying there is no money. Customs import duty which had gone up also contributed to high cost of vehicles.”
Ade-Ojo said the development is not peculiar to this year alone, adding that the trend which started like three years ago, became more significant this year.
He said the total number of vehicles imported into the country in 2015 was 18,000, but dropped to 7,000 in 2016, while the total retail market dropped by about 42 per cent from 32,000 units in 2015 to 18,000 in 2016.
Also in the commercial and passenger vehicles segment, Ade-Ojo said the commercial vehicles sold more in 2016 at 70 per cent more than passenger cars, which recorded 30 per cent of the total sales.
Meanwhile, in the international scene, Toyotal plans to spend $35 million on partnerships with several universities, including Stanford, to study ways to make better batteries for electric vehicles.
The Japanese automaker said the universities will use artificial intelligence to test different battery chemistry combinations and to explore whether other materials, such as magnesium, could be used to make better batteries, said Brian Storey, programme manager for the Toyota Research Institute.
Today’s hybrid, plug-in hybrid and battery electric vehicles are powered by lithium ion batteries — a technology that Storey said was invented nearly 40 years ago.
“And we are just now beginning to perfect them,” Storey said.
Existing batteries continue to be costly and have range limitations that have held back industry sales compared with cheaper but less fuel-efficient gasoline engines.
Storey said Toyota and its university partners want to explore new ways of designing batteries, new ways of combining battery chemistry and other materials.
