Yokohama’s Geolandar M/T G003 tyres for SUVs and pickup trucks will be fitted to the Korando DKR driven by Oscar Fuertes Aldanondo and Diego Vallejo for Ssangyong Motorsport/Sodicars Racing on the 2020 Dakar Rally (5-17 January). The same car and drivers came in third in the T1.3 petrol 2-wheel drive class in the January 2019 event, and will take on competition in the same class this year.
Goodyear will be the official tyre supplier to two top teams in the upcoming Dakar Rally. The rally returns to its roots in the desert on 5 January in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and the shift to a new continent presents new challenges to tyre suppliers, drivers and vehicles. The 2020 rally will run over sand dunes, rocky canyons and wadis or dry riverbeds, all on standard truck tyres. Goodyear has a strong record on the rally in recent years, with Petronas De Rooy Iveco occupying podium places, including two first places, with Goodyear as their tyre and development partner.
Apollo Tyres Ltd has entered the Saudi Arabia tyre market in cooperation with Al-Jomaih Tyres Company Limited, the exclusive distributors for the Kingdom. Apollo Tyres reports that it will be focussing on the large and growing truck-bus radial and passenger car tyre market, aiming to capture “a sizeable market share” in each of these segments.
Arlanxeo reports that it has successfully ramped-up sales of EPDM (Ethylene Propylene Diene Monomer) rubber produced in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and marketed under the Keltan KSA brand name. Marketing and sales of the new EPDM grades are based on an agreement concluded between Arlanxeo and Saudi Aramco in 2018, while collaboration has been further enhanced by the take-over of full ownership of Arlanxeo by Saudi Aramco beginning of 2019.
Continental is planning to open a Middle East regional office in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The joint venture project with the company’s previous distributor in Saudi Arabia, Almutlak Trade & Industries, will support growing demand for Continental’s products and services in the kingdom, according to the company.
Saudi Arabia is planning to develop a $2 billion solar and carbon black integrated complex in partnership with China’s Longi and South Korea’s OCI, according to various news reports from the area.
Russia and Saudi Arabia will finalize several joint projects by the end of 2018, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak recently told journalists. The projects referred to see Saudi Aramco partner with Russain firms Sibur and Novatek. The Sibur plant plans centre on a particularly significantly sized rubber factory.
National Tire Company (NTC) has unveiled plans to build a greenfield car and truck tyre factory in Jubail, Saudi Arabia. The goal is to focus on “premium” tyre production only.
The investment is owned by HRH Prince Fahad Bin Abdul-Rahman Bin Abdul-Aziz Al-Saud. According to NTC, the plant will be the first of its kind in Saudi Arabia and “one of the biggest and most modern individual tyre factories in the world”. The factory will make 16 million car tyres and 6 million truck tyres a year, with a workforce of 4000 at full capacity.
NTC will work with the Finnish Black Donuts Engineering Inc in the construction of the factory.
The expected influx of Saudi drivers from 2018 will have a significant impact on the auto parts, maintenance and services industry, with manufacturers and suppliers advised to stake their claim early in a market full of new opportunities, the chief of the Kingdom’s only dedicated aftermarket trade show said.
Magna Tyres reports that the first batch of 16 36.00R51 MA09 tyres (of a total of 32) en route to their destination in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, where they will be mounted on two giant crushers. These crushers are constructed by Thyssenkrupp in Germany for one of the leading cement companies in Saudi Arabia.
Cooper Tire Europe is partnering with tyre distributor and retailer Arabian Tires to expand the brand’s presence in the Middle East. Cooper currently offers a broad range of 4×4 tyres in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia-based diversified chemicals company SABIC is launching a new range of synthetic rubbers, which are being manufactured for the first time in Saudi. The products made their debut at the K-Show Europe Exhibition in Dusseldorf, Germany, 19-26 October 2016.
Membat is exhibiting at Automechanika Jeddah, Saudi Arabia’s leading regional trade fair for automotive industry, which takes place between 26 and 28 January 2016.
The Mediterranean tyre brand will introduce the tyre patterns developed during 2015 to the local market. The new catalogue will include the Passion Runflat tyre. In less than a year, this pattern has achieved A Grade in all sizes for Wet Grip.
In 2013, about 0.74 million units of commercial vehicles and passenger cars were sold in Saudi Arabia, giving the Kingdom one of the highest per capita vehicle totals globally. However, virtually all of this is imported as Saudi Arabia is also home to a huge vehicle production deficit. Nevertheless, a new report distributed by Bharat books suggests expanding growth potential in the automobile sector is attracting several vehicle manufacturers to Saudi Arabia.
Apollo Tyres has announced plans to enter the growing Qatar tyre market in the Middle East region. According to the company, the market entry was marked with a product introduction to the Business Partners in Qatar, in the presence of Indian Ambassador to Qatar, H E Shri Sanjeev Arora, late evening yesterday.
If you would like the latest news from the Chinese tyre industry in Chinese, visit our partner site TyrepressChina.com. Or click below to continue on Tyrepress.