Continental To Invest In Brazil, Malaysia

Continental AG plans to invest more than 250 million euro in building a new tyre production facility in Camacari (Bahia/Brazil) and expanding capacity in Malaysia with joint venture partner Sime Darby (car tyres in Alor Setar, truck tyres in Kuala Lumpur).

The new production capacity, which will mainly supply the company’s loss-making North American tyre operations, will add 7 million passenger car tyres and 700,000 truck tyres to the company’s annual capacity by 2008. “New cost-efficient capacity is just what we need to turn our passenger tyre business around in the NAFTA region and to attain profitable growth,” said Continental’s board member Martien de Louw.

The Brazilian plant should be in operation by 2005/2006 for car tyres, 2006/2007 for truck tyres and part of Continental’s efforts to relocate production capacity to low-wage countries.