Logan boosts Dacia sales

Rising exports and flat sales on the Romanian market will this year generate a car production surge to 220,000 units for Romanian carmaker Dacia. “Our sales are confined by the production capacity. I estimate we will manufacture 220,000 cars this year, half of which will be sold on the domestic market and the other half will be exported,” said Jean Michel Sicre, Dacia”s commercial manager.

This accounts for more than 34% growth from last year, as some 163,000 cars were produced in 2005, namely more than 6% of the total production volume registered by French group Renault, including the Renault, Samsung and Dacia brands.

“This year will also see considerable growth in the deliveries of CKD collections (Completely Knocked Down-collections made in Pitesti and destined to be assembled in other locations). While we delivered about 30,000 units in 2005, this year we will reach 120,000 units,” Sicre added.

Moreover, the production of the Mioveni-based plant will this year hit 870 units per day, of which 800 will be Logan models.

Logan will be sold in 50 countries worldwide in 2006, up from 38. This year will also bring new engines from the domestic producer. “We will launch the 1.6l and 107hp Logan, and October will see the launch of the five- and seven-seat station-wagon models. I believe this particular model may reach sales of several thousand units in the last months of the year. However, our projections are likely to be exceeded, as it has happened with the diesel model. While we originally estimated that the diesel engine, launched last autumn, would account for 30% of sales, it amounted to 50% of the total sales in December. It will certainly not stay at this level over the next months, but I believe it will top the 30% we forecast,” Sicre stated.

The French manager would not disclose the turnover targeted by the carmaker in 2006.

Dacia officials had said that 2005 brought turnover worth over 1.1 billion euros, with this value to rise to 1.5 billion euros this year and 2.3 billion euros in 2008.

Moreover, 2005 was the year when Dacia broke even, for the first time since Renault became its shareholder in the autumn of 1999.

“Financial results will be presented in February,” Sicre added. ionut.bonoiu@zf.ro