ASHEVILLE, N.C. — Volvo Construction Equipment Rents recently announced the late December opening of its 40th rental center in the United States. The new franchise, Rentals Equipment LLC, owned by Bruce Bourgeois, is in St. Rose, La., a suburb of New Orleans. Contracts are pending for a second Rentals Equipment franchise under the Volvo name in Baton Rouge, La.

Volvo began its franchise equipment rental program in 2001 and has rental centers open in Virginia, North Carolina, Florida, California, Tennessee, Ohio, South Carolina, Louisiana, New York, Minnesota, Arkansas, New Jersey, Alabama, Kentucky and Pennsylvania.

In other Volvo Rents developments, Volvo CE Rents Europe opened a new rental center in Madrid in mid-January, the first of a planned 18 locations over the next three years in Spain.