Interviews
7 Sep 21

What are the Fleet Management, Mobility Trends in Latin America?

With the ever-changing industries of vehicle fleet and corporate mobility, fleet managers need to keep up to pace with all the trends occurring throughout the world, but what can be said about Latin America?

According to Eduardo Canicoba who is AVP for business development in Latin America as well as Brazil country lead for multinational telematics firm Geotab, among the fleet management and mobility trends in Latin America to keep an eye on are last-mile delivery, long-haul trucks, car rental and leasing, and electric vehicles (EV), the executive said in a recent interview. 

"The first one I’d like to point out is last-mile delivery. Although this is something that had already been gaining popularity even before the start of the COVID-19 pandemic in 1Q20, the pandemic has pushed its popularity even more and this is due to the limitations put on people moving throughout cities," Mr. Canicoba told Fleet LatAm

We can take food delivery as an example. They are being delivered to homes, supermarkets and small to mid-sized businesses, and the vehicles could be bicycles or motorcycles, but also small cars or vans operating in urban areas, he said, poiinting out however that this is just one of the many industries Geotab supports. 
 
The second trend revolves around long-haul trucks, especially in Brazil where approximately 70% of deliveries takes place on highways. According to the executive, we must remember that Latin America does not have much in terms of railways and air travel is quite expensive. As such, road travel is more popular, and it is mainly due to the lower cost. 

The third trend mentioned by Mr. Canicoba is the car rental and leasing business. "More and more, I see that companies are looking to rent and lease instead of buying their cars. Keep an eye on this. B2B leasing is on the rise," said the executive. 

Last but not least, the fourth trend we all must keep an eye on is the growing popularity of EVs. In Latin America, Chinese EV manufacturer BYD is pushing the trend of electric buses and other OEMs such as Volvo are also going electric.  

2021 Volvo XC-40 hybrid (source: Volvo)

In Brazil, companies such as Coca Cola, Heineken, and Mercado Livre have also made announcements on transitioning to EVs, according to the executive. 
 
Going electric is still a bit expensive for the region and there are questions like:  Where do I charge my car; How much energy do I need; How much range do I have left on my battery; Will I make it too my destination. 

"However, that is what Geotab is for. As our hardware can be connected to any type of vehicle, our solutions work hand-in-hand in supporting all of these trends. We are in the business of measuring. We measure things related to security, optimization, expandability, sustainability, and others," says Mr. Canicoba. 
 
Stay tuned next week for part two of our interview as we will be zeroing in on Geotab and its support for the first-ever Fleet LatAm Manager of the Year award
 

For more insight on Latin America, join Fleet LatAm in two upcoming events this month, one being the Business Networking Group meeting taking place on 14 September and the other being the Fleet LatAm Conference occurring on 21 September.  

Top Photo: Eduardo Canicoba (source: handout)

Authored by: Daniel Bland
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