Apollo Tyres to further raise TBR tyre capacity in Chennai

Only quite recently Apollo Tyres Ltd gave word that truck and bus tyre production capacity at its factory Chennai, India would increase from 6,000 to around 9,000 tyres per day, yet the company has now announced a further truck and bus tyre capacity boost for the plant. A filing submitted to the BSE following a meeting of Apollo’s Board of Directors on 11 August shares the tyre maker’s plan of outlaying a capital expenditure of Rs 12 billion (£118.7 million) to further expand truck and bus radial capacity in Chennai from the currently planned 8,900 tyres per day to 12,000 tyres per day.

Company chairman Onkar Kanwar states that this additional capacity will help Apollo Tyres maintain its market leadership in India’s truck and bus radial market and further improve economies of scale within the Chennai facility.

In order to meet the capex requirements for both the proposed Chennai expansion and the conversion of Apollo’s leased operation in Kalamassery (Kerala state) from cross-ply truck tyres to specialty and industrial tyres, the Board of Directors approved authorisation for raising debt of Rs 20 billion (£197.9 million) through rupee term loans, foreign currency term loans, external commercial borrowings or non-convertible debentures.