Daimler has opened its first regional center for commercial vehicles for the Middle East and North Africa, situated in Dubai, UAE. Daimler Commercial Vehicles Middle East & North Africa (DCV MENA) will support 19 countries — from Morocco to Pakistan — from its regional office in Dubai. The new entity will be responsible for the group's full commercial vehicles portfolio in the region – from the Mercedes-Benz Citan city van to the heavy-duty Mercedes-Benz Actros truck. The upcoming reuptake of commercial vehicle activities in Iran will also be managed from Dubai, according to the automaker.

"Our new Regional Center will allow us to respond even faster and better to the needs of our customers. It focuses entirely on the commercial vehicle business. We are convinced that this new setup is an important step to benefit further from the growth potential of this region in the sales and after-sales business," said Wolfgang Bernhard, member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG responsible for Daimler Trucks & Buses.

DCV MENA is the first of six regional centers being opened for Daimler's commercial vehicles business around the world. Similar bases will also follow for Central Africa, Southern Africa, South Asia, Southeast Asia and Latin America within the next few months. Until now, Daimler said it had managed these regions primarily from its group headquarters in Stuttgart.

The DCV MENA Regional Center offers Mercedes-Benz trucks, and FUSO vehicles, Mercedes-Benz vans as well as Mercedes-Benz and Setra buses.

Middle East and North Africa is a promising growth region for Daimler's commercial vehicles. This year experts predict somewhat weaker economic dynamics and general economic growth of only 2.5 percent. But from 2016 to 2019 the expansion rate in the region should rise to more than 4 percent on an annual average, according to the automaker.

The three biggest sales markets in the region for Daimler's trucks, vans and buses are the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Egypt. These three countries account for approximately two thirds of all deliveries in the MENA region. Between 2011 and 2014, unit sales of trucks, buses and vans in the region grew by an average of 23 percent p.a. In 2014 the group sold 45.900 commercial vehicles in the region.

The Regional Center will be responsible for managing sales activities in the following markets: Afghanistan, Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Yemen.
The new Regional Center is located in the Jebel Ali Free Zone in Dubai, which is operated by the Jebel Ali Free Zone Authority (JAFZA).