Continental Archives - Page 145 of 229 - Tyrepress

Hannover-based Continental AG is a leading automotive supplier and – according to the company – is “the choice of leading car manufacturers, offering award-winning tyres that deliver responsive braking in all weather conditions.”

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Pirelli Keeping its Options Open Over Continental Tyre Purchase

Pirelli is interested in “analysing” the possibility of a friendly deal with Continental AG for at least part of its tyre business, despite denying this only last week. Pirelli chairman, Marco Tronchetti Provera, made his soft offer of interest in the company in a video interview given to the Financial Times and published online today (20 February). When asked if Pirelli had any interest in Continental/Schaeffer Tronchetti Provera answered: “It’s too early to say. But if the price is right, if we are asked to be part of a transaction, it could be interesting to analyse it – but only if it’s a friendly transaction.”

Re-iterating the early stage of Pirelli’s interest in Continental, the company’s press office issued the following brief statement later that afternoon: “With regard to comments on possible Pirelli transactions on Continental, the company declares that no transaction has been defined even along general outlines. The company also points out that, consistent with the financial rigor foreseen by the guidelines of the recent 2009-2011 industrial plan, any possible future transaction of a strategic nature would not comport any recourse to the market.” However, while the press department’s statement may have played down Tronchetti Provera’s words, earlier in February Il Mondo claimed Pirelli executives had conducted – on separate occasions – meetings with JP Morgan, Deutsche Bank, Mediobanca and a number of advisers.

20th February 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

Conti Automotive Appoints New Romanian R&D Head

As of February 1, research and development for Continental Automotive in Romania is being headed up by Dr. Christian von Albrichsfeld. The 12-year Conti veteran is coordinating the research and development activities of Continental in Romania at a national level in its Timisoara, Sibiu and Iasi sites. Dr. von Albrichsfeld has taken over this position from Christian Ruediger, who was in charge of the team in Romania for two years and finished his term in the position on January 31.

19th February 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

Continental AG Reports 2008 Record Net Loss

Continental AG has reported a record group net loss for 2008, following what executive board chairman Dr Karl-Thomas Neumann called “an unusual year.” The net loss was the result of the company having to write down 1.23 billion euros of “goodwill impairment” due to poor performance in the automotive group’s powertrain division. This was compounded by the effects of high raw material costs and dramatic falls in OE demand during 2008. Consolidated sales came in at 24.239 billion euros, with a group margin of 7.6 per cent – a figure within the company’s “EBIT target corridor.” Nevertheless Continental was able to reduce net indebtedness by roughly 373 million euros, leaving 10.483 billion euros.

Rubber group figures for 2008 faired considerably better with sales of 9.35 billion euros and 10.5 per cent margin. Passenger and Light Truck Tire posted sales of 5.1 billion euros, adjusted pre-tax profits (EBIT) of 644.8 million euros equating to a margin of 13.1 per cent. ContiTech’s numbers totalled 3 billion euros, 327.8 million euros and 11 per cent for sales, adjusted EBIT and margin. Commercial Vehicle Tire (CVT), however, survived on a slim margin of 2.7 per cent (36.3 million euros) despite sales of over a billion. Dr Hans-Joachim Nikolin, executive board member responsible for commercial vehicle tyres, explained that the virtual collapse of OE demand and raw material prices were at the root of the division’s narrow margins. The 290 million euros of increased costs the group had to pay as a result of raw material price increases at the root of CVT’s woes as this division had to face 100 million euros of this figure alone. However, commercial vehicle tyre’s particularly dependence on OE sales is also exposed in the full-year 2008 results.

19th February 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

Schaeffler Confirms Hetmann Has Resigned

Schaeffler Group has confirmed that the company’s chief financial officer, Thomas Hetmann, has left due to “differences of opinion regarding the future strategic concept of the Schaeffler Group.” According to an official statement released by the company, Hetmann has left by “mutual agreement” and will be replaced by Mary Jo Gresens, who will act as a consultant. Gresens was previously CFO at the automotive supplier between 1999 and 2006.

Meanwhile, Forbes has reported that Schaeffler is to present a revised restructuring plan to the German government in the next two week. A source “familiar with the matter” told the business magazine that the move, a requirement for receiving state aid, follows a 20 per cent drop in new orders at the company.

18th February 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

New Ford Focus RS Runs on Conti SportContact 3

The new Ford Focus RS – the auto manufacturer’s fastest volume model ever – has debuted in its final form at the 2009 Geneva Motor Show, stepping out on Continental’s ContiSportContact 3 tyre, sized 235/35ZR19. The appearance follows previews at the London and Paris Motor Shows in 2008.

Lars Frick, an automotive engineer for Ford tyres with Continental, stated that the manufacturer was able to offer the company a tyre appropriate to the needs of the new car: “The Ford Focus RS should be equipped with tyres, which support the sporty driving dynamics and which allows the high torque level of the car to be translated to the road. The emphasis lay on safe handling characteristics and short braking distances, even on wet asphalt. At the same time Ford expected very sporty tyres, which made the driving dynamics tests on the legendary Nürburgring Nordschleife a very useful process.”

The Focus RS will also be kitted out with the ContiMobilityKit, allowing drivers to repair flats on the fly, as standard.

18th February 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

Setzer to Head Conti Car Tyre Temporarily

Continental has announced that, as of 1 March 2009, Nikolai Setzer will take up the temporary management of the manufacturer’s Car Tyre Division. He will continue to head up the Replacement Business Car and Light Truck Tyre Division Europe and Africa positions he presently occupies, though there will be no change in structure between the sectors. He will report to Dr Hans-Joachim Nikolin, the board representative of the Commercial Vehicle Tyre Division and – provisionally – the Car Tyre Division.

17th February 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

SPD May Support Schaeffler State Aid

Germany’s Social Democratic party (SPD) is reportedly “open in principle” Continental AG major shareholder Schaeffler Group with state aid, SPD chairman Franz Muentefering told reporters in Berlin. “Situations can arise in which you need to help many, many families in order to prevent a catastrophe…Then you need to do it,” Muentefering added. The politician didn’t give any details of how government discussions on how the government’s discussions with Schaeffler could work out.

16th February 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

Conti Canada Sponsors BMW Program

Continental Tire Canada said it is continuing sponsorship of the BMW Winter Driver Training programme. The programme includes the BMW Winter Driver Training, recently held at the International Club Academy Racing (ICAR) in Mirabel, Quebec, which teaches participants key maneouvres such as emergency braking and avoidance, front and rear wheel skid control, 180-degree turns, and drifting.

“We are very proud to support BMW in its new programme”, said Maiti Leinss, Continental Canada’s marketing coordinator. “We see this programme as a great initiative for more safety on Canadian roads by promoting the importance of a good winter tyre and a trained driver.” (Tire Review/Akron)

16th February 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

Conti Trumpets Test Triumph

It’s a rare person that isn’t pleased with a good test result, and German tyre manufacturer Continental is clearly chuffed with the outcome of Autocar magazine’s recent tyre comparison. Indeed, a Conti press release highlights the ‘staggering’ difference in quality between tyres made in Europe and budget segment Asian imports.

Autocar experts travelled to Continental’s Contidrom in Germany and tested five Asian made summer tyres, using the ContiPremiumContact 2 as their reference tyre. As Conti reports, tests revealed that the imports encountered safety problems, mainly in wet driving conditions, but were also outperformed by the European tyre in terms of braking distance on dry asphalt. High-speed tests showed yet more problems, with four out of five of the import tyres failing to make the grade at top speeds.

13th February 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin May Still Be Interested in Conti

Michelin joint-head Michel Rollier, may have said that the company is facing market challenges head-on by cutting capital expenditure to 700 million euros, but that doesn’t mean it has ruled itself out of buying economically priced competitors. Speaking at a press conference on Friday 13 February, Rollier said the French tyre manufacturer would consider Continental AG again, if the company ever comes back on the market. Coming just days after Continental AG’s major shareholder appealed for investors and state support, commentators are speculating that Michelin has an acquisition strategy.

Asked what Michelin would do if Schaeffler were to look for a buyer for Continental, Rollier told journalists: “Obviously Michelin wouldn’t be absent. I can’t tell you more than that.” Rollier’s interest appears to stretch beyond Continental alone to any other strategic advantageous tyre marker: “There are many smaller tyre companies in the world, and it’s not impossible that the crisis can lead to mergers. Here too, we certainly won’t absent.”

13th February 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

IPIC Refutes Schaeffler/Conti Acquisition News

The Abu Dhabi government-owned International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) denied on February 12 it was negotiating to acquire a share in Schaeffler or its 49.9 per cent owned subsidiary Continental. In a statement, IPIC managing director Khadem al-Qubaisi said “this speculation has surfaced recently in the German media. We are quite surprised that this has arisen at all.”

12th February 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

Pirelli not Interested in Continental – Tronchetti Provera

According to news published by Reuters, Pirelli & C SpA is not interested in acquiring the tyre business of Continental AG. The news service reports that a comments to this effect were made by Pirelli chairman Marco Tronchetti Provera on February 11. During a press conference Tronchetti Provera said the Italian company was instead focusing on stand-alone growth.

11th February 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

German Government to Restart Talks With Schaeffler

The German government is about to reopen support negotiations Schaeffler Group if, according to news reports, the company agrees to reorganise its financing with lenders. “When there is such a plan, there will be further negotiations,” Economy Ministry spokesperson Steffen Moritz told Bloomberg in an email.

Meanwhile, Abu Dhabi’s International Petroleum Investment Company (IPIC) sovereign wealth fund is reportedly considering taking a stake in either Schaeffler Group or Continental AG, according to Financial Times Deutschland. The unconfirmed reports suggest a stake of no less than 20 per cent and “probably” more than 25 per cent in one of the two companies is being considered.

10th February 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

Schaeffler Appeals for Investment

Schaeffler Group is reportedly fighting against the possibility of a company breakup, as the automotive supplier struggles under the weight of 11 billion euros of debt it acquired when buying Continental AG. Over the weekend the owners of the Schaeffler Group, Maria-Elisabeth Schaeffler and her son Georg Schaeffler, commented on the situation in a public statement which saw them deny the company gambled on the purchase of Continental AG and appeal for outside support.

“…Schaeffler Group requires support for a limited period of time. Our talks with politicians are about securing interim financial aid in a special exceptional situation for a company that is sound at the core,” the statement read, adding: “The Schaeffler Group will present a viable concept to the federal government and the states. We are well aware that the viability of this concept will be scrutinized by the responsible public authorities to ensure that an interim financial aid package will not burden the taxpayers, and we realize that the Schaeffler Group must pay the statutory interest and fees incurred due to the bridgeover.”

9th February 2009/by Tyrepress Editors

Kumho Becomes a New York Cab Supplier

Kumho Tires reports it is “excited to have its beloved tyres sported by the iconic yellow taxicabs of New York City.” Recently Kumho Tire USA announced it has been providing tyres to New York City Taxi and Limousine Commission (NYTLC), an agency that regulates New York City’s yellow taxicabs. The South Korean manufacturer’s products are being fitted as replacement tyres to yellow cabs operating in Manhattan, joining several other replacement tyre manufacturers, including Goodyear, Pirelli, Michelin and Continental, which also supply the taxis.

“We have supplied two thousand tyres to NYTLC since 2008, we expect the amount of supply to continually increase through local distributors for years to come,” said a Kumho Tires official. Currently around 1,500 yellow cabs ply the streets of Manhattan, assuring the tyre maker a steady stream of business.

6th February 2009/by Tyrepress Editors