Conti announces capacity-doubling Brazil investment
A US$210 million investment in Continental’s Camaçari, Brazil plant is expected to boost capacity to around nine million passenger car tyres and almost a million truck tyres per annum within the next five years. Announcing the growth plans, Continental Tire the Americas CEO Matthias Schönberg stated “this investment is part of Continental’s strategy to grow our tyre operations worldwide significantly, especially in the BRIC countries. It will allow us to almost double the production capacity of the Camaçari plant by the end of 2015.” The first signs of capacity growth will be witnessed this year as plant capacity is expected to creep up from its current approximate level of 4.5 million passenger tyres and 350,000 truck tyres to 5 million passenger tyres and 450,000 truck tyres.
“We are announcing this second wave of the initial investment of US$ 260 million realised in 2004,” added Renato Sarzano, General Manager at Continental Tire in Latin America. “The goal is to expand production to meet the expected growth of the markets supplied by this plant in NAFTA, the economic bloc formed by the United States, Canada and Mexico, and Latin America, in which Brazil occupies a prominent position.”
Camaçari – the first Continental tyre plant in Brazil – officially opened in April 2006 and currently employs 1,150 people. The plant occupies a total area of 800,000 square metres; it was designed, Continental comments, to accommodate future expansion. The factory’s managing director, Pedro Matos, reports the investment “will allow us to streamline processes, install new equipment and will add 400 direct jobs, benefitting the entire region.”
Last year, Continental’s market share in Brazil’s passenger and light truck replacement tyre sector reached a record level and the company recorded one of its best operating results in Brazil, with the volume of passenger car and light truck tyres sold increasing 25 per cent over 2009. Conti also sold 38 per cent more commercial vehicle tyres there.
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