Pakistan-China joint venture tyre plant in operation

The first phase of the China-Pakistan joint all-steel radial tyre plant, Service Long March (SLM), has been officially put into production, with an annual output of 740,000 sets of all-steel radial tyres.

SLM was established in 2019 as a joint venture in Sindh province, Pakistan. Chinese tyre maker Chaoyang Long March and Pakistan’s Service Industries Limited are the two shareholders. Chaoyang Long March’s investment accounts for 44 per cent of the project. The total investment in this project is US$250 million and construction is being carried out in three phases.

When the three-phase project is fully operational, SLM will be able to produce 2.4 million sets of all-steel radial tyres annually. According to local news reports, SLM is Pakistan’s first all-steel radial tyre production line, and all production technologies come from Chaoyang Long March.

At the end of March 2022, SLM held its inauguration ceremony. Pakistani President Arif Alvi attended the event. “This (SLM factory) will eventually provide 85 per cent of the production capacity of tyre products and earn foreign exchange for Pakistan. It will provide employment opportunities for thousands of people,” he said.

Chaoyang Long March is a tyre manufacturer based in Liaoning Province with an annual production capacity of 4 million sets of all-steel radial tyres under brands including Longmarch, Roadlux and Supercargo. The tyre company is also optimistic about the prospects of SLM. Not long ago, Jin Yongsheng, the financial controller of Chaoyang Long March, said in an interview that the SLM’s products could not only meet the massive demand in Pakistan’s domestic market but also be exported to the United States, the European Union and other regions.