All truck dealers in Belgium are preparing for the arrival of electric trucks, with a clear lead for concessionaires in Flanders. Yet the energy transition is not the only explanation for the many changes of the past twelve months.
(Central photo: TT Mioli)
Most shifts in 2025 took place within the Mercedes-Benz network. For 15 years, Peter Brock and his team have been working on a rationalization of the brand with the star, with the aim of only working together with a limited number of multi-site concession holders.
A hole in the net
Latest development, although that is purely administrative in nature: all Walloon branches under the control of Car Avenue are now under a single concession contract. From now on their activities are under the responsibility of Pascal Huet, which is therefore responsible for an area that (at least officially) comprises the provinces of Liège and Luxembourg. The only exception is Truck Center Jost in Amel, which was ultimately not taken over by the French group RCM Saga. The same group stopped in June 2024 with its after-sales activities in Tournai and only has two service points left: in Charleroi and in Saint-Ghislain.
In the meantime, the Eeckhout group continues to expand. For example, Pids Lourds Services in Froyennes took over the Aftersales for the Tournai region and a new Mercedes-Benz location opened in Puurs on 19 March 2025. And that is not the case: via Eeckhout-Cardoen the group also opened a new garage for Ford Trucks in Wielsbeke.
Also at Mercedes-Benz there was some unexpected news: Hedin Automotive put his truck activities in Ghent Stop, under pressure from the city council that regards the garage activity as ‘zonewedemd’ (read: not fitting at that location). Because Van Mossel Trucks also closed its doors on 1 March 2025, there is now a gap in the Mercedes-Benz network between Sint-Niklaas, Bruges and Kortrijk.
With the other brands, on the other hand, it is remarkably quiet. At Renault Trucks, Lens Motor took over Garage du Carrefour in June 2024, to be purchased in March 2025 by the Swiss group Emil Frey. Emil Frey is nothing less than the largest car dealer group in Europe, good for a turnover of 17 billion euros in 2023. But it is also a group that is only recently active in the truck sector, through the acquisition of Ktrucks, a French group of Renault Trucks-Concession holders.
Also at Renault Trucks the acquisition of Truck Service Londerzeel is noticeable, who again records a retail activity at the same location as a few years ago. The site was renamed Renault Truck Brussels.
With Man, the focus remains on philialization, with the takeover of the De Laak group as the most recent achievement. The two branches were given a new name: Man Liège (in Thimister-Clermont) and Man Kempen (in Geel). In addition, the after -sales network of the German brand became a lot more compact after the termination of the contract with Garage Freddy Willems in Opwijk. Most customers were forwarded to Man Brabant in Kobbegem.
Finally, Garage Roloo was designated by Ford Trucks as a new service point for the Mechelen region.
There is the most movement within the Mercedes-Benz network.
Few new garages
For all concessionaires and/or service points, the biggest challenge is currently ready for staff and infrastructure for the arrival of electric trucks. This considerably inhibits the plans for new construction projects.
Nevertheless, the brands for the next twelve months will announce some new projects: the new headquarters of Ford Trucks Belgium in Geel, a brand new Iveco garage of Truck Supply in Herstal (Finally!), A new building for TH Trucks in Tubeke (replaced the site in Anderlecht, a new workplace of Buga (SCANIA), a new workplace of Buga) and Buga’s workplace) Hamme. Other current investments mainly have to do with refreshing or modernizing existing infrastructure, such as with Derma Trucks and Nebim (Volvo Trucks), and at Renault Trucks Brussels (see above).
Renault Trucks Belgium resumes retail activities in Londerzeel.
Chicken and egg
Within a year, it will become clearer which type of interventions each garage may perform on electric trucks. For Man, for example, the garages are classified according to a scale with four levels (standard, advanced, professional, expert), based on their infrastructure, the number of available charging points and the level of education of the staff. Man Brabant and Lockefeer were the first two to receive the ‘Emobility’ recognition. The same recognition also went to the Scania site in Drongen (Ghent).
Yet the networks still have time to become e-compatible. With Daimler Truck Belgium, for example, the ultimate deadline is on 2028. A factor that should not be underestimated in this context is the commercial success of electric buses. Man achieved great results, but Iveco has scored striking successes in recent weeks … which requires heavy investments and the recruitment of qualified staff in the short term.
And that is not about a few extra people: Scania Belgium recruited no fewer than 22 technicians in one year! So the personnel numbers rise, while the sale of electric trucks is not really going. And because the workshops are not running at full speed for the time being, the efficiency of the investments is less predictable than hoped. It remains a classic chicken and egg story …
The five striking facts of the year
- Takeover of Lens Motor by Emil Frey
- Stopping truck activities from Hedin Automotive in Ghent
- Takeover of De Laak by Man Truck & Bus Belgium
- Renault Trucks Belgium takes over Truck Service Londerzeel
- Two new garages for Group Eeckhout-Cardoen in one year
