Wagon industries resume orders and invest
Valor Econômico
Reborn in the decade of 2000, the cargo wagon industry had its worst year in 2009. Highly depending on the mining sector, the sales fell 80%, and two of the four plants of the field installed in the country suspended production. With nearly 70% of the market - entirely supplied by local industry - Amsted-Maxion sold 570 wagons in 2009, compared to the 4.3 thousand sold in 2008. However, it already has orders of 6 thousand cars in stock. Usiminas Mecânica, one of the industries that suspended the commercial production last year, will resume operating and will invest R$ 50 million (US$ 27.8 million) to double its productive capacity from 60 to 100 wagons/month. In its projection, the country will demand 25 thousand wagons until 2016.
With an installed capacity of large dimensions - its unit located in Hortolândia occupies an area of 1 million square meters, designed to produce 10 thousand wagons a year -, Maxion went through a difficult adjustment last year. It shutdown a foundry in Osasco (SP) and made cuts in its two other units. From 4.5 thousand employees, the staff dropped to 1.9 thousand employees. But Amsted-Maxion has already started hiring and now has 2.3 thousand employees, says its President, Ricardo Chuahy. After the middle of the year last year the orders started being placed again, in part motivated by the perspective of overcoming the crisis, in part by anti-cyclical policy of the Government - the BNDES (National Development Bank) lowered the interest rate for the Finame (Machine and Equipment Financing), for capital goods, to 4.5% a year.
With the new setting of cheaper credit, something unprecedented happened with Maxion: long-term contracts. Vale placed an order for 4.5 thousand wagons, 500 of them for 2010. Other 2058 units will be delivered in 2011 and there is a purchase option for another 1982 cars in 2012. Another large client, MRS, did the same: 344 wagons for this year, and 1044 in 2011. That is, if Maxion does not close any contract over the next three years - something unlikely -, it has assured an average demand of 2 thousand cars a year.