Sisu Auto – From a strong brand to a key player in the defense industry

Why?

For decades, Sisu Auto has manufactured special vehicles tailored to customer needs under the Sisu Polar brand, designed for demanding northern conditions and built in Finland. This traditional brand has repeatedly reinvented itself throughout its history to meet ever-changing market demands.

Sisu Auto is now seeking new growth by developing the Sisu GTP 4×4 product family of special vehicles designed for defense forces. These vehicles meet the requirements of various national defense forces, including NATO. The new vehicles are not only durable, protected, and safe but also easily customizable for different operational tasks.

What and how?

Sisu Auto manufactures military and special vehicles designed for demanding use, with the new GTP product family at its core. GTP vehicles are user-friendly, mobile, NATO-standard armored, and highly modular military vehicles. They are suitable for various purposes, including troop transport, air defense missions, and as ambulances.

The company’s competitive advantage lies in its deep customer understanding, flexible operations, and the design and manufacturing of special vehicles suitable for various applications. Unlike large international competitors, Sisu Auto can quickly respond to specific customer needs. Additionally, the high mine protection, armor, and user-friendliness of the GTP product family are crucial features in crisis situations. An example of listening to customer needs is the recently unveiled modular Sisu GTT All-Terrain vehicle, developed for Arctic conditions and equipped with rubber tracks.

Growth and internationalisation

Sisu Auto has strategically positioned itself on a path of strong growth. The company began serial production of Sisu GTP 4×4 vehicles in the fall of 2024. The order of over 260 vehicles from the Swedish Defense Forces is the largest in Sisu Auto’s history.

The goal is to double the company’s turnover this year to one hundred million euros and to reach EUR 500 million by the early 2030s. Growth is based on expanding the Sisu Defence product families, increasing production capacity, efficient logistical processes, and closer NATO cooperation. So far, Sisu Auto’s markets have been in Finland and Sweden. New growth is sought particularly from the Baltic, Nordic, and northern Central European markets.

The importance of private equity

Tesi became an owner in Sisu Auto in the fall of 2023 to strengthen the company’s growth financing base and to promote its international growth. In the summer of 2024, it increased its ownership to 24.4 percent. Sisu Auto is a strategically significant player in the Finnish defense industry, which is a strategic investment theme for Tesi. In board work, Tesi has provided sparring that has enabled the development of efficient processes and the promotion of international growth.

Tesi’s role is not limited to just financing and supporting growth – it brings strategic expertise and impact as a state owner, which is particularly important when dealing with defense authorities of different countries.

General information

Founded in 1931, Suomen Autoteollisuus Oy, Oy Sisu Auto Ab, has over the past nine decades produced over 50,000 heavy trucks, special vehicles, and military vehicles for various transport tasks, both for domestic markets and export.

About ten years ago, Sisu Auto launched a development program aimed at developing and bringing to market a modular, multi-purpose product family of protected military vehicles to meet the needs arising from the deteriorating security situation in Europe. The result of the development work was the GTP product family, and the company now has the largest order backlog in its history, amounting to over 200 million euros, primarily for export.

The company’s clientele consists of defense forces and authorities, as well as private sector customers in Finland and Sweden who require Sisu Polar special vehicles.