According to a company report, the shareholders of the MShZ (Moscow Tyre Plant) elected a new board of directors at the manufacturer’s annual meeting on June 28. The Moscow Tyre Plant, which is owned by Amtel-Vredestein, has a share capital of 343.2 million roubles (£6.6 million). Amtel-Vredestein announced its intention to acquire the Moscow Tyre Plant last July, and in September commenced the production of tyres under the Amtel brand name.
Kazakhstan’s president Nursultan Nazarbayev has placed time capsules in the foundations of a new tyre plant and two other new projects being initiated in the Astana Industrial Park. The facility is being built by Ordabasy Corporation, and reports indicate it will be engaged in the manufacture of Nokian tyres. The factory will produce 4 million tyres a year when in full production.
Astana, which in the Kazakh language literally means “capital city” is – no surprises here – the capital of Kazakhstan. Astana is also part of a ‘Special Economic Zone’ established in June 2001 to provide more favourable tariff conditions for companies and investors.
India’s Falcon Tyres has signed a technical assistance agreement with Japanese giant Sumitomo Rubber Industries. Chairman of Falcon’s parent Ruia group, P.K. Ruia, has stated that Sumitomo will provide know-how for the production of tyres for two-wheeled vehicles.
According to Mr. Ruia, the agreement will provide assistance for everything from improving production processes through to the introduction of tubleless and other technically advanced tyres. He said although the brand had to date focused upon the OEM segment, the current sluggish growth in OEM demand might force the company to increasingly look at the replacement market.
Falcon Tyres finalised its 2006-07 results at its board meeting on June 28, and have reported an increase in dividend from 25 to 30 per cent for the year. This follows an increase in turnover from £312.9 million £393.9 million. The company’s net profit improved from £4.4 million to £4.8 million.
Bridgestone Corporation announced on June 27 that its board of directors has given approval to a number of proposed changes to board members and corporate officers. The changes to board member position and responsibilities, effective as of June 29, are as follows:
– Masaharu Oku: Oku’s new position is that of vice president and senior officer, and he will continue in the role of member of the board responsible for production technology. Mr. Oku will discontinue his present position as director of the Raw Material Manufacturing Engineering Development Division.
(Akron/Tire Review) Seen as a major slap at Detroit’s Big 3 automakers, the Senate yesterday voted 65-27 to raise CAFE standards by 40 per cent no later than 2020. The measure calls for all passenger cars and light trucks/SUVs average at least 35 miles per gallon by that date.
Automakers immediately claimed the increased standards would cost them billions, and one – troubled Chrysler Group – said the measure would bankrupt them. The proposal also includes provisions against price gouging and a call for major increases in the production of ethanol.
The House, which passed its own version earlier this month, is expected to begin considering the Senate bill next week. The Senate bill also voted down a compromise package crafted by Michigan Senator Carl Levin, who worked with automakers to develop a lesser plan.
(Akron/Tire Review) Denso Manufacturing Canada Inc., based in Guelph, Ontario, plans to expand its 112,442 square-foot facility by approximately 215,200 square feet. The new investment will total $63.7 million, and will create approximately 300 new jobs by 2010.
Due to the expansion, the subsidiary’s capital was increased by $24.5 million in May.
Denso Manufacturing Canada will produce radiators, condensers and electric fans and will integrate these products into engine cooling modules. The company will also continue producing air conditioning units.
Amtel-Vredestein N.V. had confirmed that it has nominated Russian Machines CEO and Gaz Group Chairman Petr Zolotarev to its Executive Board. Acting Vice-President at Yukos Refining and Marketing, Vadim Pesochinsky, was also nominated to the Executive Board. Both appointments are to be effective July 1st, once they are approved at the company’s Annual General Meeting of Shareholders (AGM) scheduled for 30 June in Amsterdam.
Zolotarev is expected to succeed Alexei Gurin as head of the Company. Gurin, who joined the Company in 2001 and rose to the post of CEO in 2004, plans to leave the Group to pursue new opportunities as soon as the terms of his resignation are concluded — which is expected to be at the time of the Company’s AGM.
The world’s second largest chemical manufacturer, Dow Chemical Co., announced on June 11 that construction had begun on a new facility for producing Solution Styrene Butadiene Rubber (SSBR). This facility, located in the central German town of Schkopau, is scheduled for completion in the second half of 2008 and will have a production capacity of 60 kilotonnes.
SSBR is a key component in the manufacture of high-performance tyres, and according to Dow the substance is the rubber market’s fastest growing segment, with anticipated annual growth of five to six per cent over the next few years. To assure a continuing and cost-effective supply of the key raw components of SSBR – butadiene and styrene – Dow has invested in securing its own providers of these materials.
Michelin has released further details regarding changes at its Ota factory in Japan. As previously reported, the tyremaker intends to transform the facility into a centre for producing technologically advanced Japanese market products at the expense of its current export production. This change in focus is expected to come at a cost of about 65 million euros.
In addition to the fiscal cost, Michelin also states that 550 jobs will be cut from the factory before it fully resumes production with its new emphasis. However a company spokesman added that an unspecified number of workers will be offered alternative employment within the Michelin group. “We are not planning 550 redundancies,” he said.
(Akron/Tire Review) Akebono Brake Corp. announced that Seiji Onoda has returned to the U.S. arm of Akebono Brake Industry Co. Ltd. as director of manufacturing. In addition, the company appointed Roy Okawa as the general manager of its Elizabethtown, Kentucky., plant, and will continue as general manager of its Glasgow plant. Harold Rumple was named director of production engineering for Akebono.
Tim Wakabayashi was promoted to vice president of OE sales, and will lead Akebono’s domestic and Japanese OE sales teams. Hiro Sato, who will continue in his role as general manager of OE Sales, will also take over marketing.
On June 7 South Korean industrial giant Hyosung Corp. revealed its plans to build a new £80 million tyre cord facility in Vietnam by 2010 as part of its drive to expand global production. The plant will be located in Dong Nai province, near Ho Chi Minh City, and will eventually produce 53,000 tons of tyre cord annually, much of which will be destined for export to Europe, South America and other parts of Asia.
The Russian Tatneft consortium, whose petrochemical division includes the companies Nizhnekamskshina, Tatneft Neftekhimsnab and Kama Trading House (formerly known as Kamskhina) has told the regional government in Tatarstan that it anticipates the three tyremakers’ combined output will increase to 21 million tyres. This increased production will bring about a small rise in Tatneft’s Russian market share, from 22 to 23 per cent.
Nizhnekamskshina will reportedly also invest 3 billion roubles (£58 million) in the modernisation of its manufacturing facilities by 2009. This upgrade will see total tyre production at the facility in question rise from its current 5 million units per annum to 8 or 9 million, with radial production increasing to 3 million units. In 2006 the company produced 12.206 million tyres, with this figure expected to slightly rise to 12.235 million in 2007.
An Indian newspaper has reported that Balkrishna Industries may be considering off-loading its paper business in order to focus upon the manufacture of tyres. On June 6 Mumbai based DNA (Daily News & Analysis) quoted unnamed ‘sources’ that a greater emphasis upon the tyre business, which accounts for more than 80 per cent of the company’s revenue and 95 per cent of profit, has led to the necessity to make such a decision.
However B K Bansal, head-finance, Balkrishna Industries, told the paper “There is no such plan for selling of paper business. We are expanding both our paper and textile business in the current fiscal.” The publication also spoke of plans by Balkrishna Tyres, which operates as a separate business unit to the paper and textile business, to increase production capacity for tractor radials through a £16 million capex.
In order to meet ever growing radial production in the Asia region, polyester fibre manufacturer Performance Fibers has taken the decision to expand the capacity of its tyre cord fabric facility in Kaiping, China by 30 per cent. The company will install new equipment and machinery, which should be operational at full capacity by the third quarter of 2007.
This most recent investment is the latest in a series of planned expansions at the Kaiping, including a greenfield expansion completed in 2006 to expand production of the company’s patented Dimensionally Stable Polyester high performance fibre and fabrics. These expansions have more than tripled capacity since early 2004, “This latest investment shows our ongoing commitment to meeting the strong demands of the Asian tyre market that continues to experience double-digit growth,” said Greg Rogowski, president and CEO of Performance Fibers. “As we have previously announced, additional expansions are planned into the future.”
Continental intends to boost production capacity at its Timisoara plant in Romania by around 8 per cent, to over 13.5 million tyres per annum. Capacity in 2006 stood at 12.5 million units, and the German tyremaker will utilise a 15 million euro investment budget to bring about the planned increase.
During the past seven years 50 million tyres have been produced at the Timisoara facility, with production capacity on average increasing by a million tyres per year. “Less than seven years after production started in Timisoara, in the wake of over 170 million-euro investments, we now produce up to 40,000 tyres a day,” stated Martin Kleinbrod, general manager of Continental Automotive Products.
Continental opened its new Timisoara facility, the manufacturer’s most modern in Europe, in 2000, and since that time the company has opened three tyre and automotive component factories in western Romania.
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