As of September the use of part-worn passenger car and motorcycle tyres will no longer be permitted in the United Arab Emirates. This decision was announced by the Emirates Authority for Standardization and Metrology (ESMA) on 15 March as part of a range on measures intended to regulate the whole tyre life cycle.
In November, the largest tyre recycling plant in the United Arab Emirates officially opened. The facility, in Al Ain, Abu Dhabi, was set up by Danish recycling machinery specialist Eldan Recycling and can process up to 8,000 kilograms of old tyres per hour and produces granulate between 0.5 and 4 millimetres.
Al Dobowi, one of the leading tyre companies in Dubai, has inaugurated the first Hankook Masters Shop in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Al Dobowi, the official distributor of Hankook tyres in the (UAE) cooperated with Hankook Tires, Dubai in the completion of this project. The first Hankook Masters UAE branch is located within the premises of Grand Service Station, Dubai.
The owner of the Dubai Taxi Corporation, RTA (Road and Transportation Authority), has agreed to trial with Infinity Tyres. “It is the first time that the RTA has accepted testing Chinese made tyres. And we are very proud to say that these are Infinity Tyres,” stated Harjeev Kandhari, executive director of the Al Dobowi Group, which owns the Infinity brand.
Infinity Tyres was the first supporter this year of the SAATHI social advocacy initiative, which strives to achieve “a better quality of living for individuals with special needs.” In line with Infinity’s mission to give back to the community, the company reports that it is finding “unique ways to make a difference in our local communities.”
Pirelli’s test-driver Pedro de la Rosa has told motorsport journalists that pleased with the development of the future tyre supplier’s current product following a two-day testing session at the Circuit de Catalunya near Barcelona. Former Sauber BMW driver de la Rosa told Autosport today: “These Pirelli tyres have their own quite different characteristics to the current supplier that the drivers will appreciate next year. I'm confident that they will form a very competitive package. Pirelli's arrival is great news for Formula One.”
During a two-week long tyre safety campaign held in the United Arab Emirates, police stopped and confiscated 1,099 trucks running on unsafe tyres. Tyre related faults are reported to be one of the main causes of accidents in the UAE, a problem compounded by the preference of many truck drivers for cheap but inferior quality tyres.
Pirelli is considering setting up a joint venture tyre manufacturing facility in Saudi Arabia. UAE based newspaper Gulf News has reported on the tyre maker’s desire to capitalise on the abundance of raw materials available in the Persian Gulf city of Jubail. A Pirelli delegation visited the city in December and held discussions with officials from the Royal Commission of Jubail and Yanbu.
Continental Commercial Vehicle Tires Retread Europe has become the latest company to join the Tire Retread & Repair Information Bureau (TRIB). Upon announcing the division’s signing up, Christian Beindorff, Head of Operations Retread Europe for Continental, commented: “We are pleased to be a member of TRIB and look forward to a long and mutually beneficial relationship between our organisations.”
World motorsport and motoring body the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (or FIA to its friends) has announced Jean Todt as its new president for a four-year term. The FIA General Assembly staged its annual meeting, at which voting was completed, in Paris last week. Todt scooped 135 votes, while the other candidate, Ari Vatanen managed 49. 12 abstained or produced invalid votes. Voting in the General Assembly was made by secret ballot. The votes were counted in private by the FIA legal department, under the supervision of scrutinisers proposed by the two presidential candidates and designated by the General Assembly. The entire voting procedure was supervised by an external Huissier de Justice (French state-appointed public witness).
Formula One tyre supplier Bridgestone has announced the final compound allocations for the remaining four rounds of the 2009 FIA Formula One World Championship. The company says Brazil it is making a return to the allocation philosophy of leaving a rubber stiffness gap between allocated tyres for the Grands Prix at Suzuka, Japan and Interlagos, Brazil. Consecutive compounds will be used at Singapore and Abu Dhabi, UAE.
A chunk of Ruia Group company Falcon Tyres will be sold in order to increase ouput at its factory in Mysore, eastern India, and to ensure its promoters shareholder remains below the 75 per cent required to stay listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange. The share, according to Indian media, is to be sold to a private equity firm for Rs 1 billion (£12.6 million).
“We are in the process of preparing our presentation and hope to be through with the placement within the next two months,” Falcon Tyres chairman Pawan Kumar Ruia told the Hindu Business Line. Ruia reports that the promoters’ share in the company went up to 86 per cent following the recently concluded open offer requiring either a public issue or private placement.
According to the Khaleej Times, the use tyre market is alive and kicking in some parts of Abu Dhabi. Healthy demand exists for larger size commercial vehicle tyres, with examples changing hands from between Dh 200 and 700. However the country’s authorities are increasingly voicing their concern over the practice of fitting used tyres to vehicles: According to Colonel Hamad Adeel Al Shamsi, director of the Abu Dhabi Police’s Department of Traffic and Patrols, used tyres were responsible for the death of 13 persons and severe injuries of 16 persons last year. For this reason the department has intensified its inspection of substandard and worn out tyres and launched campaigns to educate motorists about the importance of safety of tyres.
Representatives from the custom, tuning and motorsports industry have met in Dubai to discuss the Barbican Turbo show, which will be held between the 8th and 10th October at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre. Last year’s inaugural show was attended by more than 19,000 enthusiasts, a very respectable headcount for a first-time show. Critical to the show’s ongoing success, believes organiser United Business Media, is direct input from the industry about Barbican Turbo’s future development and how it can meet the needs of participating companies.
“We are especially pleased the organisers have decided to involve us and other companies in the event process as it allows them to produce an event that we actually want and need to support our businesses goals,” stated Foilacar managing director Swen Roters, who was present at the Dubai meeting.
Automechanika Middle East is the largest automotive aftermarket exhibition covering entire UAE, Gulf Countries, wider Middle East and Africa. Automechanika ME 2009 will be held from 31 May–2 June, 2009 at the Dubai International Convention & Exhibition Centre, UAE.
Some of the most lucrative export destinations can be reached through the ports of Dubai. Automechanika Middle East is the only platform for the Tyre related companies to target $1.1bn Tyre Industry.
For further information contact:
Jasmeet Bakshi
Show Manager
Automechanika Middle East
Epoc Messe Frankfurt GmbH
PO Box 26761
Dubai, UAE
Tel. +971 4 3380102
Fax. +971 4 3380041
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