S8 Capital aiming for 2.4 million tyres a year at ex-Bridgestone plant in Russia

The new owner of the former Bridgestone factory in Ulyanovsk, Russia intends to resume tyre manufacturing at the site this year and wants to “reach significant production volumes” in 2025. According to the Ulyanovsk Region Development Corporation, S8 Capital has a first-stage goal of 2 million tyres per annum, which it will subsequently increase to 2.4 million tyres, the plant’s pre-acquisition output. The Ulyanovsk plant has a design capacity of 4.2 million tyres a year.

“The tyre production plant in Ulyanovsk is one of the most modern in the Russian Federation,” states Thorsten Schubert, managing director of S8 Capital. “We see broad prospects for the enterprise’s future development. Our primary task is to resume production as soon as possible, increase volumes and create a product portfolio that meets the current demands of consumers. The main focus will be on developing a range of premium tyres.

“Separately, I would like to emphasise that we highly value the plant’s professional competencies and corporate culture. The holding has the opportunity to grow, develop and train its employees – and we intend to continue to do this,” Schubert adds.

During the meeting, Ulyanovsk regional Governor Alexey Russkikh stressed that a “mandatory condition” of S8 Capital’s acquisition of Bridgestone Tire Manufacturing CIS LLC was the retention of the company’s workforce. “This is the common position of the Ministry of Industry and Trade of Russia and the region’s Government, he adds. “There is also a clause in the agreement to restore production to the plant’s design capacity. For our part, we will monitor the fulfilment of these obligations and will provide all the necessary support to restart production as soon as possible.”

The Ulyanovsk plant is operated by Cordiant JSC, which became a S8 Capital business in May 2023.