Yokohama Rubber to set up plant in Mexico

The Yokohama Rubber Co., Ltd. has announced plans to strengthen its capacity for supplying tyres to the North American market by building a passenger car tyre factory in Mexico. The company intends to invest up to US$380 million to build a plant with an annual production capacity of 5 million tyres.

Construction of the new plant will start in the second quarter of 2024, and production is scheduled to start in the first quarter of 2027. Yokohama Rubber will build the new plant on an approximately 610,000 square metre site that’s capable of accommodating future expansion.

“The company recognises that local production for local demand will be indispensable to rapidly meeting the expected increase in demand for tyres in the North American market,“ comments Yokohama Rubber. “The new plant will be located in the Mexican state of Coahuila and will have access to a major railway line and expressway that will facilitate timely supply of tyres to customers throughout North America.”

The consumer tyre strategy in Yokohama Rubber’s new three-year medium-term management plan, Yokohama Transformation 2026 (YX2026), aims to maximise the sales ratios of high-value-added tyres by expanding sales of that global flagship Advan brand, the Geolandar brand of tires for SUVs and pickup trucks, winter tyres, and 18-inch and larger tyres. Yokohama Rubber also will continue its ‘Product and Regional Strategies’ focused on strengthening the development, supply, and sales of tyres that respond to specific trends in each regional market.