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Bridgestone Motorsport Valencia Test Summary

The Valencia race circuit in Spain played host to Bridgestone’s medium compound Potenza for ten of Formula One’s eleven teams for the second test of 2008 on January 22-24. The medium compound Potenza dry grooved racing tyre was in action for the entirety of the test, which took place in dry conditions, with blue skies overhead on the first two days, but a mainly cloudy and overcast day three. No runs were completed using any of Bridgestone’s wet range of Potenza Formula One tyres.

Teams completed valuable evaluation work with both the latest and last season’s cars run to the 2008 regulations. New cars from BMW Sauber, Ferrari, Honda, McLaren, Red Bull, Renault, Toyota and Williams and were all put through their paces along with older cars from some of these teams as well as Force India and Toro Rosso. Super Aguri were not present at this test. Bridgestone Potenza Formula One tyres will be in use next week at Barcelona on 1-3 February, where Bridgestone’s hard compound Potenza will be used for the first time this year.

25th January 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Tyrexpo Asia 2009 Opens for Business 6 Months Early

Tyrexpo Asia 2009 organiser, ECI International, has distributed more than 10,000 thousand brochures about the seventh staging of the popular tyre and equipment show. The exhibition will again take place in the Singapore Expo Centre, but the dates have been brought forward by six months to 24-26 March 2009. Traditionally held in September, the show has opted for the earlier dates to secure an exclusive slot in the increasingly-congested Asian exhibition calendar. The move is also designed to give exhibitors and visitors greater flexibility in scheduling their marketing and exhibition activity for the year. 45 per cent of exhibitors have already decided to appear again in 2009.

25th January 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Bridgestone F1 Tyres ‘Essentially the Same’ as 2007

Bridgestone reports that Formula 1 teams are busy testing ahead of the 2008 season, with most running their new cars at the latest test session at Valencia in Spain, and teams have the benefit of racing on tyres that are fundamentally the same as those tried and tested last year. Interest in the new season seems at an all-time high with a staggering 35,000 crowding the track to watch the Ferrari duo of Felipe Massa and defending World Champion Kimi Raikkonen set the fastest times.

Perhaps most impressive, however, was Nico Rosberg who finished third on the timesheets in the new Williams FW30, which had only had its first shakedown the day before. Rosberg’s best time was just a tenth behind Raikkonen and two-tenths faster than McLaren’s Heikki Kovalainen. The man most of the crowd had come to see – Spain’s double World Champion Fernando Alonso – finished the day with the sixth fastest time behind countryman and McLaren test-driver Pedro de la Rosa.

24th January 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Apollo Offered £20 Million From Hungary

It has been reported that Apollo Tyres was offered HUF 7 billion (£20.2 million) in incentives from Hungary’s government to secure the country as the base for the Indian tyremaker’s new factory. If accurate, this figure published in the Budapest Times is far less than the almost £70 million approved by the European Commission for Hankook in 2007. According to Hungarian prime minister Ferenc Gyurcsány, the Apollo subsidy equals about two-thirds of the Hankook subsidy per employee.

23rd January 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

TVS Projects 30% Growth, Hints at Future Greenfield Expansion

TVS Tyres expects to maintain a growth rate of 30 per cent in the Indian market, reports the company’s marketing general manager. Mr. M Sivasubramanian told India’s Business Standard newspaper that this projected growth has already been witnessed over the last three years, during which time the company has raised its production capacity from 600,000 to 900,000 tyres. He added that each year TVS Tyres is investing Rs 4 million (£51,800) in research and development.

Sivasubramanian also believes that the introduction of low cost cars, such as Tata’s long-awaited Nano, will not affect the two and three-wheel vehicle specialist’s sales. To the contrary, he commented, TVS project an increase in the demand for two wheeled vehicle tyres, in part due to the growing trend towards replacing tyres at shorter intervals than in previous years.

23rd January 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

TVS Develops Puncture Resistant Motorcycle Tyre

Indian manufacturer of tyres for two and three wheel vehicles, TVS Tyres, has launched a new puncture resistant ‘concept tyre’ it hopes will help secure a sizeable chunk of India’s fast-growing two wheeler market. The tyre’s puncture resistance quality is provided by a sealant gel. This gel coats the inner surface of the tyre and enables pressure to be maintained following a puncture without the need for further maintenance.

In a country where roads can greatly vary in surface quality, puncture resistance is a particularly strong selling point, and TVS hopes to capitalise on this. “The country’s first puncture-resistant tubeless tyres for two wheelers have been designed specially for Indian roads where punctures are common,” said S Balasubramanian, executive vice president Operations and Marketing, TVS Tyres.

21st January 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Dunlop India Hopeful for Fresh OE Agreements

Dunlop India is reported to be seeking fresh OE deals. According to the Times of India, the Ruia Group company has entered into talks with India’s largest commercial vehicle maker, Tata Motors, regarding a truck tyre deal. Company chairman Pawan Ruia also stated that Dunlop India hopes to come to an arrangement with India’s Bharat Earth Movers Ltd (BEML) for the supply of OTR tyres. The manufacturer of earthmoving and heavy industrial equipment recently signed an OE agreement with Apollo Tyres, for which the company is increasing its OTR tyre capacity from 10 to 60 tonnes per day.

Mr. Ruia added that Dunlop India is also in negotiations with Hindustan Copper and Coal India for the supply of OTR tyres.

21st January 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Lanxess India to Begin Tyre Chemical Production in 2010

Specialty chemicals group Lanxess AG intends to invest 50 million euros in relocating production of rubber chemicals from Thane, in the Indian state of Maharastra to Jhagadia, in Gujarat. Production will begin in 2010 and will supply the rapidly growing Indian tyre market. Lanxess is the only western company to establish such operations in India.

Lanxess will employ about 250 people at the Jhagadia site during its first stage of expansion. The head office of Lanxess India Private Limited will, however, remain in Thane. Jhagadia will become the company’s second production site in India after Madurai in Tamil Nadu, southern India, and will be the larger of the two.

18th January 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Apollo in Europe: Neeraj Kanwar Speaks with Tyres & Accessories

In the coming months Apollo Tyres will establish a stronger foothold in Europe through the establishment of its first facility, the recently announced 200 million euro passenger car tyre factory to be built in Hungary. Only days after announcing this monumental step for the Indian manufacturer, Apollo Tyres’ joint managing director and COO Neeraj Kanwar spoke to Tyres & Accessories about the decision to enter Europe and what the future holds.

Firm news of Apollo’s intention to set up a European production facility was first made public in mid-November 2007, and several sites in Eastern Europe were scouted as potential factory locations; in addition to Hungary the company named Poland and Slovakia as contenders (media reports on potential sites in Germany were dismissed as unfounded). However, the first of these three locations proved most attractive to Apollo: “The decision was primarily on the basis of hard economic and commercial factors, based on which a total cost of delivering the final products to markets was derived,” Mr. Kanwar told Tyres & Accessories. “Hungary was very competitive.” Secondary reasons, including the region’s liveability and cultural openness, were also taken into consideration, he added.

18th January 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Apollo Invests 200 Million Euros in Hungary Car Tyre Plant

Apollo Tyres Ltd and Hungarian authorities have entered an agreement to build a passenger car radial tyre production plant with a first phase annual capacity of 7 million units. Phase one of the project is expected to be completed in 18 months time at a cost of 200 million euros. Hungarian Prime Minister, Ferenc Gyurcsany, and chairman & MD of Apollo, Onkar S Kanwar, met this morning, resulting in an “invitation” for Apollo to build the factory. The most likely site of the project is in Gyongyos outside Budapest city, Hungary.

The fact that Apollo describes the deal as an “invitation” and refers to the Hungarian Investment Agency as being “very helpful” suggests that public subsidies are involved. No details of this are currently available. However, when Hankook built its 500 million euro (£340 million) plant in Dunaujvaros, Hungary recently, it received approximately 20 per cent of the total investment in assistance. Roughly half of this was direct subsidy with the rest coming in the form of tax relief. An Apollo statement on the subject reports that the company has been evaluating various options for a European manufacturing hub to service the European and North American markets in a process that began about nine months back ago.

Commenting on the plans at a media briefing, Hungarian Prime Minister Ferenc Gyursacy said: “I am well aware of Apollo Tyres as a leading tyre manufacturer with a global expansion plan. We are very keen to have Apollo set up its first green field manufacturing unit, outside India, in Hungary. Apollo will bring to Hungary its world class manufacturing expertise, technology and people management skills.”

Onkar S Kanwar added: “So far, this is the largest investment made by any Indian company in Hungary. This manufacturing facility in Gyongyos, Hungary, will become our hub to service our passenger car radial customers in Europe and North America. This is a key investment in our global strategy. The Hungarian Prime Minister, the Investment Agency and all officials associated with this decision have been immensely helpful throughout our negotiations…Apollo Tyres is currently in a growth mode.”

According to Apollo, the European investment is designed to compliment Apollo Tyres’ planned investment in India. Yesterday, the Indian manufacturer’s board of directors approved 2.2 billion rupees for the construction of a world class greenfield radial facility in the recently acquired 135 acres of land in the Oragadam Industrial Park, outside Chennai city in Tamil Nadu. This investment is in the first phase of the project, which is also to be completed in the next 18 months.

16th January 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Apollo Launches Winter Tyre Range

India’s Auto Expo 2008 motor show in New Delhi has been the venue for another first from Apollo Tyres – the company’s chairman and managing director, Onkar S Kanwar, unveiled Apollo Tyres’ – and India’s – first winter tyre ranges. Called the Acelere Ice and Hawkz Ice, the new tyres will be produced in sizes to fit passenger cars and 4x4s.

The Ice range of winter tyres have been designed for European and North American markets, and utilise the compounds (100 per cent silica), siping and tread patterns traditionally associated with this market segment. Apollo reports that both the Acelere Ice and the Hawkz Ice underwent extensive testing at the Ivalo Test Track in Finland prior to their unveiling, and will become available for purchase in the autumn of 2008.

15th January 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Apollo Announces Results, Projects

Gurgaon, India, January 15, 2008: The board of directors of Apollo Tyres Ltd, on January 15 announced the company’s unaudited results for the third quarter of the financial year 2007-08. The board also approved investments of Rs 3.6 billion (£46.8 million) for various green and brown field projects to be implemented in India.

Net sales for the companies India & overseas operations closed at Rs 12.4 billion (£161.1 million) up 14 per cent £140.3 million) from Rs 10.8 billion. Operating profit rose by 60 per cent, and net profit, at Rs 820 million (£10.7 million), increased by 165 per cent.

Commenting on the results, Onkar S Kanwar, Apollo chairman & managing director, said: “This is the kind of steady growth that we are looking to maintain in India, South Africa or any other market that we work in, in the near future. Our strength in manufacturing and people are assets, and Indian companies need to leverage these to ensure that we build Brand India as a quality manufacturer of products and services.”

15th January 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Apollo Unveils Concept Tyres

Apollo Tyres is a manufacturer moving up in the world; the company is in the process of significantly expanding its production capacity, and the acquisition of overseas companies plus the establishment of a greenfield facility in Europe is on the cards. A further sign that Apollo aspires to bigger and better things is the unveiling of its, and India’s, first concept tyres.

The first of these is called the Aspire TT and has been designed for Apollo by Turin based Tom Tjaarda, designer of over 70 well-known cars including the De Tomaso Pantera, VW Karmann Ghia 1500, Fiat 124 Spyder and Ferrari 330GT and 365 GT Coupe. The Aspire TT features a bi-directional asymmetric tread pattern. Displayed alongside the Aspire TT at the Auto Expo 2008 in New Delhi was the Dolphin concept, a tyre offering strong wet weather performance.

14th January 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Conti to Invest up to 4 Billion Euros Worldwide

Continental is considering spending as much as 4 billion euros on the acquisition of other companies. This news was given to the German magazine Auto Motor und Sport by company CEO Manfred Wennemer, who said that the company could “finance acquisitions of 3 to 4 billion euro through borrowing without problems.”

According to Wennemer, Conti is considering 30 to 40 candidate companies worldwide for takeover, and the company is looking at expanding its tyre business in the growing Asia region in particular. “In tyres, we are searching in Asia, mainly in China, for takeover targets.” Also specifically named as a focus was India. “As far as our tyre business is concerned, we want to enter the Indian market. It’s the last blank on the world map of our tyres business,” he said.

14th January 2008/by Tyrepress Editors

Conti to Invest up to 4 Billion Euros Worldwide

Continental is considering spending as much as 4 billion euros on the acquisition of other companies. This news was given to the German magazine Auto Motor und Sport by company CEO Manfred Wennemer, who said that the company could “finance acquisitions of 3 to 4 billion euro through borrowing without problems.”

According to Wennemer, Conti is considering 30 to 40 candidate companies worldwide for takeover, and the company is looking at expanding its tyre business in the growing Asia region in particular. “In tyres, we are searching in Asia, mainly in China, for takeover targets.” Also specifically named as a focus was India. “As far as our tyre business is concerned, we want to enter the Indian market. It’s the last blank on the world map of our tyres business,” he said.

14th January 2008/by Tyrepress Editors