Quadrupling tyre production in India an option for Yokohama

Yokohama Rubber’s first factory in India entered production last year with a capacity to produce 2,000 tyres a day, and local subsidiary Yokohama India is now looking to increase capacity to 8,000 tyres a day – some 2.8 million tyres a year.

Sanjay Chatterjee, general manager of Yokohama India, told PTI that phases two and three of the Bahadurgarh factory project were “under feasibility,” adding that the tyre maker’s plan is to “reach out to full capacity of 8,000 tyres per day.”

Chatterjee added that Yokohama India’s sales target for 2015 was 40 per cent higher than last year, a growth rate far above the eight to ten per cent growth currently taking place in India’s replacement tyre market. He added that Yokohama has been successful with its Earth-1 tyre, a range specifically developed for the Indian market. Currently the Earth-1 line-up covers 25 sizes.

The possibility of expanding into the commercial vehicle segment is also under consideration. Chatterjee told PTI that truck and bus tyres are a “potential market” that could be met by local production. The general manager explained that while Yokohama India was studying this option, it has as yet reached no decision.