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Turkey to Privatise Telecom Company, Two Tyre Manufacturers Involved

The Turkish government is planning to privatise its national communications company, Türk Telekomünikasyon AS (Turk Telecom). Two tyre manufacturers have been linked to the prospective bidders. One of the favourites to complete the purchase is Oyak, the Turkish army pension fund, which is involved in a joint venture with Goodyear. But at the same time Telecom Italia, controlled by Pirelli, is also said to have a good chance of winning.

3rd March 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin Extends X One Guarantee

Michelin is extending the X One Total Satisfaction Guarantee into 2005, US magazine e-trucker has reported. The guarantee will be available to X One tyre customers in the US that purchase at least four replacement assemblies. According to the report, the guarantee will cover the first 10 sets of X One tyres purchased. As part of its guarantee, Michelin will buy back X One casings and will cover 75 per cent of the cost of the wheels if the owner isn’t pleased with the tyre’s performance at the end of its original tread life. Michelin recently added a new production line at its Spartanburg, South Carolina, factory partly to increase its capacity to produce X One tyres.

16th February 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

New Appointments to BERU’s Supervisory Board

Four new members, including BorgWarner’s CFO and vice president, have been appointed to the supervisory board of Beru AG. At the request of Beru’s executive board, economist Dr Ulrich Wöhr, (Diploma Business Management), chartered accountant Robin J Adams, CFO and chief administrative officer of BorgWarner Inc, Anthony D Hensel, as well as BorgWarner’s vice president, Alfred Weber were asked to join the board. The appointments follow the execution of the share purchase agreement of roughly 62 per cent of Beru AG’s shares through BorgWarner.

11th February 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Bidvest Buys 17 per cent Stake in Tiger Wheels

Diversified services group Bidvest has acquired a 17 per cent stake in Tiger Wheels for 239.9 million (£20.65 million), according to a South African Business Report story. Last year, Bidvest acquired McCarthy Motor Holdings and also has an American call option to purchase a further 1.8 million shares by 30 April for 45 million (£3.89 million). If it exercises this option, it will increase its stake in Tiger Wheel to about 20 per cent. Bidvest chairman Brian Joffe will be appointed a non-executive director of Tiger.

10th February 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Pirelli to Buy 300 million More TI Shares

The shareholders of Olimpia SpA have agreed to allow the purchase of a further 700 million Telecom Italia shares. As chief partner in the company (holding 50.4 per cent) Pirelli could buy up to 300 million share, while the other parties (Edizione, Hopa SpA, Banca Intesa SpA and UniCredito Italiano SpA) will be able to buy 100 million each. Olimpia investors already hold 17 per cent of Telecom Italia’s shares. 700 million shares equates to roughly six per cent of Telecom Italia.

8th February 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Study Suggests Trust More Important Than Price

Research carried out by the US Automotive Aftermarket Industry Association (AAIA) shows that consumers rate product quality and trust above price when selecting a vehicle service provider. According to the Tire Review report, researchers discovered that the cost of service ranked seventh in the study. The report entitled “The Aftermarket Consumer: DIY or DIFM” looked into the factors affecting consumer decision making.

4th February 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

The End of the Spare Tyre? – Results

When Tyres & Accessories published a question of the month on the subject of run-flat tyres, it provoked quite a reaction. At the time T&A asked: Should run-flat tyres be fitted on new cars as ‘standard’ original equipment?

The answers given were both varied and surprisingly. Although 45 per cent of those who responded answered with a definite ‘yes,’ more than a quarter of readers (27 per cent) said an equally definite ‘no.’ Almost the same number sat on the fence, so to speak, satisfied with the development of a two-tier market. Consequently the majority of respondents were either against or indifferent to the introduction of run-flat technology through OE, while the largest single group were for them. So, the question still remains: does anybody really want run-flats, or are manufacturers trying to introduce them by stealth?

27th January 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Indian Tyre Industry Seeks Radial Duty Reduction

The All India Tyre Dealers’ Federation has urged the Indian finance ministry to rationalise excise duty on automotive tyres, supporting the introduction of radial tyres. In its pre-budget memorandum, the federation requested the government to fix excise duty on radial tyres at the rate of 16 per cent on heavy vehicles and at 8 per cent for tractors to boost the sales of radial tyres. The federation has also been pressuring the authorities to lower import duty on tyres.

24th January 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Michelin Announces New Accreditation Programme

Michelin has announced the creation of a new UK/Ireland car tyre dealer accreditation programme. The scheme is designed to help consumers find good tyre distributors where they can expect excellent service. The new programme will be wholly funded by Michelin and managed by an independent company.

In order to achieve accreditation individual tyre outlets will be asked to meet minimum requirements in the services and facilities they provide, the cleanliness of the centre and the quality of the staff and operational procedures. This will be audited annually by anonymous professional shoppers and by an on-site technical inspection.

17th January 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

BorgWarner Executes Majority Takeover of BERU

BorgWarner Germany GmbH, Heidelberg, has announced that the closed share purchase agreement to purchase the majority of BERU AG’s shares, has been enforced. The announcement follows confirmation that BorgWarner Germany had agreed a share purchase agreement with The Carlyle Group and a group of family shareholders. This agreement accounted for 62.21per cent of BERU AG’s shares.

As a result, two representatives of the Carlyle Group (Mr Gregor Böhm and Mr Heinrich Rutt) and two other businessman resigned from the supervisory board.

5th January 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Alcoa Acquires Samara and Belaya Kalitva Facilities from Rusal

Alcoa has announced that it has proceeded with its purchase of Rusal’s fabricating facilities in Samara and Belaya Kalitva in the Russian Federation. One of the two plants will be used for forged wheel production.The news following approval of the relevant Russian governmental organisation, the Federal Anti-Monopoly Service (FAS). This resulted in an FAS private ruling stipulating condition to ensure that Alcoa complies with its legal requirements and notification obligations. With the final government approvals in place, Alcoa and Rusal say they are taking the necessary steps to complete the transaction.

According to the companies, the terms of the transaction will be disclosed when the deal has been completed, which is expected at the end of January 2005. “The decision is an important step forward for both Alcoa and for Rusal,” said Alexander Bulygin, Rusal’s CEO. “For us, it means we can move ahead with our strategic focus on upstream and alloy production, and on expanding our raw materials access. We welcome Alcoa to Russia and anticipate continuing close relations in the future.”

The Samara facility is located about 500 miles southeast of Moscow. It features cast house, flat rolled products, extrusion, and forging capabilities and serves customers in a number of different markets, including transportation, packaging, and industrial products.

The Belaya Kalitva facility is located about 500 miles south of Moscow. The facility also features cast house, flat rolled products, extrusions, tubes, and forgings capabilities. The Belaya Kalitva facility has specialised plate rolling and finishing equipment that will complement and increase Alcoa’s present supply position. Alcoa claims that with its know how and management systems, the plant will not only be able to expand the product offerings for Russian customers but also will eventually be able to produce products for major customers in the west.

4th January 2005/by Tyrepress Editors

Green Light for Integration of Phoenix into ContiTech

After procuring more than 75% of the Phoenix capital stock in November, the Continental subsidiary ContiTech AG may in the future exercise a dominating influence over Phoenix AG following the vote of the Phoenix shareholders. At the extraordinary shareholders’ meeting of Phoenix AG on December 28, the shareholders of the Hamburg company approved a corresponding control and profit and loss transfer agreement which had already been concluded between Phoenix and ContiTech on November 16. The agreement will go into effect as soon as it has been entered in the commercial register.

29th December 2004/by Tyrepress Editors

BorgWarner Publishes Tender Offer to Beru Shareholders

BorgWarner Germany, an indirect subsidiary of BorgWarner, Wilmington, USA, has officially published its takeover offer for Beru. As previously announced, the offered purchase price amounts to 67.50 euros per share. The acceptance deadline is 24 January 2005.

According to Deutsche Bank analysts, the most interesting point about the offer it’s the fact that BorgWarner does plan to opt for a “squeeze out” or a domination agreement “for the time being.” However, there is clause stating, if Beru’s AGM agrees to a domination agreement or a squeeze out within one year after publication of the offer and the price is higher than the current takeover price then BorgWarner is bound to pay the difference to those shareholders who have tendered their shares.

The closing of the share purchase agreement and the exercise of the share purchase option agreement remain subject to regulatory approval of the relevant authorities. More details are expected in the next few days.

9th December 2004/by Tyrepress Editors

Bridgestone to Purchase Rubber Estates from Goodyear

Bridgestone Corporation today announced that it has entered into an agreement with The Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company to purchase 95 per cent of the American company’s stake in Goodyear Sumatra Plantations (GSP). Terms of the pending purchase have not been disclosed.

GSP, which began operations in 1917, is one of the largest natural rubber estates in North Sumatra Indonesia. Its activities include the planting, growing, tapping and processing of natural rubber. GSP has approximately 18,000 total hectares (47,000 total acres) with approximately 5,000 employees.

Bridgestone said its acquisition of GSP is part of its aim to secure a stable supply of natural rubber and to increase its research and development in this area. The group supplies some of its own demand for steel cord, synthetic rubber and natural rubber, as well as carbon black.

30th November 2004/by Tyrepress Editors

BorgWarner’s Beru Announcement

BorgWarner Germany, Heidelberg, a subsidiary of BorgWarner, US, has announced a voluntary public tender offer for Beru AG of 67.50 euro a share. A share purchase agreement of 62.21 per cent from major shareholders and a share purchase option agreement for 0.82 per cent has already been signed. All that is left to be approved by the relevant authorities is the closing of the share purchase agreement and the finalisation of the share purchase option agreement.

1st November 2004/by Tyrepress Editors