Voronezh to increase tyre production

At the end of 2015 tyre production of JSC Voronezh Tire Plant (of which Pirelli is the main shareholder) grew by 35 per cent compared to 2014 – that is 1.792 million units against 1.322 million tyres the year before. The news was shared by the firm’s general director Yury Gribanov during the ceremony to mark the receipt of Ford Q1 status.

However, as strong as this growth is, a year earlier Voronezh sent out a press release suggestion production would increase 46 per cent to 1.9 million tyres by the end of 2015. And therefore production has not grown as fast as was expected.

Moving forward, Gribanov said that this year the factory plans to increase production volume to approximately 2.2 million tyres, which equates to another 20 per cent growth. This is said to require investment of some 10 million euros (770 million rubles). These funds will be directed primarily at modernizing equipment and improving security. Last year, the factory was invested 15.9 million euros, according to local news sources.

Voronezh, which has production in the city of Kirov, is part of the joint venture Pirelli and GC Rostec.The Italian connection brings with it a focus on “premium tyres”. In practice this means the Russian factory makes tyres with diameters ranging from 16 to 21 inches. In 2016 Voronezh is expected to start making 22-inch tyres. About 80 per cent of tyres produced at the plant are sold in Russia, the rest are supplied to CIS countries, with some being sold in Scandinavia.