Solaris Achieves Record Result in 2009 Despite Industry Downturn

Solaris Bus & Coach finished 2009 with a record result despite adverse developments in key markets. Sales of new Solaris buses were up 7.5% to an all-time high of 1114 units. Turnover reached 272 million EUR, up 11.4% from

the previous year. For 2010, Solaris also expects a good performance.

Defying trends in the bus industry, Solaris Bus & Coach finished 2009 with its best result ever. "For Solaris Bus & Coach, 2009 was a very successful year. We met and exceeded all our targets: a further increase in production and sales, confirmation of our leading position on our home market and sustainable preservation of all jobs," Solaris CEO Solange Olszewska said. "We significantly improved our performance in further key European markets. Looking at our order books, we are confident to say that 2010 will be another good year for Solaris."

Market Leader in Poland, Biggest Importer in Germany

In 2009, Solaris Bus & Coach increased its sales of buses by 7.5% to a new record level of 1114 units (2008: 1037 units). 262 of these were for customers on the Polish home market. In Poland, Solaris maintained its unrivalled leading position with a 27.3% share of the overall bus market (2008: 27.3%). In Solaris’s key segment of city buses, the performance was better still with a market share of 53.1% (2008: 52.6%).

A further 852 buses were sold to customers in other European countries (2008: 557 buses). Export sales thus accounted for 76.5% of total sales (2008: 53.7%). The largest export market was Greece, which received 322 new Solaris buses. 320 of these were for Athens bus company E.THE.L, forming the biggest single order in Solaris’s history.

In Germany, 224 new Solaris buses were registered (2008: 185 buses), an increase of 21.1% on the previous year. Solaris’s share of the overall bus market was up to 4.7% (2008: 4.1%). This made Solaris the biggest importer of buses into Germany and ranked the company third on the market. All new Solaris buses registered in Germany in 2009 were city buses, resulting in a share of 9.5% of this key market segment (2008: 9.1%). Solaris maintained its long-standing position as the largest importer of city buses.

Increased Turnover, Growth in Employment

In 2009, the Solaris Bus & Coach S.A. turnover was up 11.4% to a new record level of 272 million EUR (2008: 244 million EUR).¹

Thanks to this good performance, Solaris was able to slightly increase its number of employees despite a general downward trend in the industry. At the end of 2009, a total of 1562 persons worked for Solaris (2008: 1550 employees). CEO Solange Olszewska said, "Unlike most of our competitors, we were able to grow sales, turnover and employment last year. Our aim for 2010 is to further accelerate our sustainable growth."

New Board Members

On 1 July 2009, Dr Guntram Danne joined the Solaris board of directors as executive board member for Finance, Investment and IT. Dr Danne received his doctorate in industrial engineering from the University of Cologne and started his career in international finance and management consulting. Subsequently, Dr Danne worked for a large German manufacturer of municipal utility vehicles, where he held positions in extended management and as managing director of the company’s Polish subsidiary.

Gerald Matyssek was called to the Solaris board of directors on 1 February 2010 as executive board member for Technology. Matyssek previously spent 30 years with two renown German bus manufacturers in leading positions in vehicle design. Before joining Solaris, Matyssek worked for a leading management consultancy, advising Solaris Bus & Coach on project management and assisting in the development of the Solaris InterUrbino intercity bus.

Solaris Tramino Low-floor Tram

2009 saw the premiere of the much-awaited Solaris Tramino low-floor tram. The first order for this innovative new product came in November 2009 with a tender for 40 units for Poznań City Transport. The first Solaris Tramino for Poznań will be delivered by June 2011, with the remaining vehicles following by March 2012, in time for the Euro 2012 football championships in which Poznań will be a host city.

"The Solaris Tramino pre-production vehicle is currently being commissioned. At the same time, we are setting up volume production. Bodyshells will be welded in Środa Wielkopolska, close to our existing production site for bus bodyshells. This new site will employ 80 qualified new staff. For final assembly, we are evaluating several options and hope to finalise our plans in the next weeks. Here, we expect to create a further 200–250 jobs," said Solaris founder Krzysztof Olszewski.

Winning Poznań’s tender was just the start of ambitious plans for the rail industry. Olszewski explained, "Currently, we are participating in tenders for trams in Poland, but we have also received strong positive signals from other markets. We would like to launch export activities accordingly over the next years. In future years, I expect that our turnover from rail vehicles will be comparable to that achieved in the bus industry."

Plans for 2010

In 2010, Solaris will continue to expand its product range with innovative, cutting-edge technology. In the second half of the year, the Solaris InterUrbino intercity bus will enter serial production in several specification packages tailored to the demands of European markets.

Solaris’s commitment to eco-friendly transport will be renewed with a newly-developed serial hybrid city bus. Its premiere is planned for the IAA Commercial Vehicles show in Hannover in September 2010. Solaris is developing this state-of-the-art bus with an experienced German manufacturer of traction equipment for electric vehicles. Solaris will be able to offer its customers a full range of diesel-electric hybrid buses, enabling Solaris to exactly meet local operational demands.

At the same time, Solaris Bus & Coach continues its research and development of pure electric buses designed to operate without overhead power supply. "According to our more conservative plans, we are looking at a market launch in 2015. On the other hand, we will celebrate Solaris’s 15th anniversary in March 2011 - and we might just have a surprise in hand for our customers then," said Solaris CEO Solange Olszewska.

¹ Converted from reporting currency PLN according to Polish National Bank 2009 annual median exchange rate.