Press releases 2001

Volvo Buses and Svenska Räddningsfordon are forming a joint company for the development, manufacture, marketing and sale of rescue vehicles. The name of the new company is Swedish Firebus Arvika AB. The jointly developed firebus is a unique concept, marking the first time ever that a fire tender has been built on a bus chassis.

As previously announced, the Board of AB Volvo has decided to introduce a personnel option program in which senior executives in the Volvo Group are allocated options relating to Volvo series B shares.The first allocation occurred in January 2000.

ECAPS has now received its first order from the Swedish National Space Board. The order, worth SEK 11 million, is for a demonstration of environmentally friendly rocket fuel for satellite engines.

The Annual General Meeting of AB Volvo held on April 25 2001 approved the Board of Directors' proposal that a dividend of SEK 8.00 per share be paid to shareholders, a total of SEK 3.355.558.736. The record date for receipt of dividends was set at April 30, 2001. The dividends will be distributed to shareholders through VPC (the Swedish Securities Register Center) on May 4, 2001.

Worth a total of SEK200,000, the Volvo Technology Prize was awarded, at the Volvo Group AGM, to a group of engineers who have developed a highly advanced method of cooling rocket nozzles for space applications. The new technique is known as film cooling.

Lars-Göran Moberg, President of Volvo Powertrain, will become a member of the Volvo Group Executive Committee, effective May 1. Volvo Powertrain has approximately 9,000 employees and develops and produces engines, gearboxes and other driveline components for trucks, buses, construction equipment and marine and industrial engines within the Volvo Group.

Deliveries from Volvo Global Trucks, which comprises Mack Trucks, Inc., Renault V.I. and Volvo Trucks, during the period January-March 2001 amounted to 42,139 units compared to 47,189 in the same period last year. Order intake was down 15%, of which North America was down 26% and Europe 10% compared to the same period last year.

Volvo IT tar ett nytt steg i satsningen på externa kunder och blir huvudleverantör av driftstjänster för Nobel Biocare. Avtalet gäller från första juli 2001 och gäller under fem år.

Volvo and DaimlerChrysler have reached an agreement covering Volvo's cooperation with Mitsubishi Motor Corporation (MMC) whereby Volvo is transferring its 3.3 percent shareholding in MMC and all rights and obligations with relation to MMC for a total purchase consideration of approx. USD 297 M (SEK 3,000 M).