Maxxis, Bridgestone investing in India

According to local media sources, both Bridgestone and Maxxis plan to ramp up their activities in India. Maxxis Group intends to invest a further US$100 million over the next five years to capture a 15 per cent stake in the two-wheeler tyre market, while Bridgestone Corporation is looking to increase its production capacity for car tyres by ten per cent next year to meet rising demand from both OEM and aftermarket customers.

Daily production capacity at the Maxxis Rubber India plant in Ahmedabad, Gujarat state has been 20,000 two-wheeler tyres and 40,000 tubes since the facility opened in 2018. Speaking with the Financial Express, director Tsang-Chih Chu shares that Maxxis plans to invest $100 million in “key” areas. This will include the acquisition of new production machinery for the “four-wheeler segment – mainly PCR” and the acquisition of additional land on which to build a new facility.

Chu expects the investment will increase Maxxis’ two-wheeler market coverage from 82 to 90 per cent, and other areas of interest include tyres for electric vehicles. “We are focusing on electric vehicles by introducing innovative technologies and features like low rolling resistance,” he comments.

Bridgestone: 33,500 tyres daily in India

Bridgestone India is said to hold a 20 per cent share in the country’s aftermarket passenger tyre segment. The wholly-owned subsidiary of Bridgestone Corporation produces tyres at two plants in India – Pune, Maharashtra and Indore, Madhya Pradesh. Parag Satpute, chief executive officer of Bridgestone India, says these facilities have a combined daily capacity of close to 30,000 tyres, with output exclusively sold in India. “Through the next year, we are planning to enhance capacity by an additional around 3,500 tyres per day as the business in India is growing so well,” he told the Economic Times.

According to the newspaper, Satpute considers Bridgestone India’s recent business growth to be “significant,” with volume growing by 50 per cent compared with 2019 and aftermarket passenger car segment market share growing four per cent in the last two years, 20 per cent.

The chief executive officer said Bridgestone India has invested Rs 20 billion (£214.6 million) in expanding manufacturing capacity at the two plants as well as in technology. The tyre maker is now looking to launch tyres for the rapidly growing electric vehicle segment.

“We have made investment in new technology to improve our capability, which has, in turn, helped us manufacture a much wider range of tyres locally,” Satpute said to Economic times. “We are able to manufacture up to 19-inch rim tyres in India, which is fitted on to the SUVs and all the premium cars. So even with import restrictions Bridgestone tyres are available that are produced locally in our plants.”