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Dunlop sale/Cooper purchase unlinked, says Apollo

Apollo Tyres executives have denied there is any link between the recent sale its Dunlop operations in Africa and its later purchase of Cooper Tire. Apollo agreed to sell most of its South African operations to Sumitomo Rubber Industries Ltd. for $60 million last month. However, speaking minutes after the company announced it had agreed to buy Ohio-based Cooper Tire for $2.5 billion, Apollo vice chairman and managing director Neeraj Kanwar told The Times of India that two moves cannot be directly linked:

13th June 2013/12,345 Comments/by Tyrepress Editors

Apollo to raise $2.1 billion debt via bonds for acquisition

Further details of Apollo’s Cooper Tire acquisition have been published by Indian brokerage house Angel Broking. In its 13 June market outlook report, Angel Broking notes that Apollo Tyre’s acquisition of Cooper Tire & Rubber will be funded entirely through debt. Apollo, it elaborates, plans to form a new holding company in the Netherlands involving Cooper and Vredestein, which would raise US$2.1 billion in debt via bonds. The major portion of the debt will be backed by Cooper and Vredestein’s assets. The remaining debt $450 million debt will be raised at Apollo’s Mauritius subsidiary and serviced by its standalone business, says Angel Broking.

13th June 2013/12,345 Comments/by Tyrepress Editors

The Cooper/Apollo gossip was right

When the rumour mill began grinding in the last quarter of 2012, Apollo did little to counter speculation that it was preparing to buy US tyre-maker Cooper Tire. With the gift of hindsight it seems the gossip was exactly right. Back then, as Tyres & Accessories as well as other observers suggested there was a strong rationale for such a move, but with no-one breaking ranks it was difficult to be more definite.

Now, following confirmation of the move, the purchase is being presented as a strategic merger. But it is also a complex manoeuvre. Apollo, founded in 1972, has an increasing reputation for fast development and particularly with regards to its Apollo and Vredestein brands, which have been able to attain OE contracts with leading carmakers and tuners. Cooper, the 11th-largest tyre company in the world by revenue, was founded in 1914 and supplies numerous brands around the world such as Cooper, Mastercraft, Starfire, Chengshan, Roadmaster and Avon, which is particularly popular in the UK.

12th June 2013/12,345 Comments/by Tyrepress Editors

NTDA announces TAFF Awards 2013 shortlist

The National Tyre Distributors Association has unveiled its 2013 shortlist for each of the five balloted categories in the Tyre & Fast Fit Awards. The Association also called for nominations for the Innovation Award and for the Tyre Centre of the Year Award, entering its third year as part of the annual British tyre industry Oscars. Voting this year will be 100 per cent online, with NTDA members and non-members alike eligible to vote. The Awards are sponsored by speciality chemicals group Lanxess for the second successive year, and the media partner is Tyres & Accessories magazine.

12th June 2013/12,345 Comments/by Tyrepress Editors

Reports: Apollo sells South Africa operation

Local new reports suggest Apollo Tyres has sold Apollo Tyres South Africa (ATSA), including the Ladysmith passenger car tyre plant, to Japan-based Sumitomo Rubber Industries (SRI) for $60 million. The company will reportedly retain the Durban plant, which manufactures truck and bus radial tyres and off-highway tyres used in the mining and construction industries. All employees of the company, other than those in the Durban plant, will continue with ATSA, the company said in a statement.

30th May 2013/12,345 Comments/by Tyrepress Editors

Despite weaker Q4, Apollo FY13 profits surge

For Apollo Tyres, the 2013 financial year ended on 31 March, and the tyre maker reports that its profit was up almost 50 per cent for the full year. Apollo’s net profit between 1 April 2012 and 31 March 2013 amounted to Rs 6.1 billion (£73.0 million), a 48.8 per cent year-on-year increase on the Rs 4.1 billion earned in the previous financial year. Net sales rose 5.3 per cent to Rs 127.9 billion (£1.5 billion) and operating profit increased 29.2 per cent to Rs 15.5 billion (£185.6 million).

15th May 2013/12,345 Comments/by Tyrepress Editors

Michiel Kramer appointed marketing communications manager at Apollo Vredestein

Michiel Kramer (34) was appointed manager of marketing communications and product management at Apollo Vredestein BV on 1 May 2013. He replaces Bandi Vaczi, who has been promoted to head of global marketing communications at Apollo Tyres Ltd. Kramer will lead the teams responsible for Apollo and Vredestein products and brands in Europe and North America.

14th May 2013/12,345 Comments/by Tyrepress Editors

Vredestein partnering with Mansory

Eagle-eyed Geneva motor show attendees may has spotted a 22-inch version of Vredestein’s new Ultrac Vorti fitted to the Bentley Continental GT-based Mansory Sanguis. This pairing, Vredestein states, doubled as an announcement of a new partnership between Mansory and the tyre maker.

29th April 2013/12,345 Comments/by Tyrepress Editors

Dunlop comments on BluResponse testing success

Dunlop’s new Sport BluResponse tyre was launched in Dubai earlier this year (see Tyres & Accessories’ February edition), but it has already achieved some excellent results in European magazine tests. In full summer tyres tests conducted by Germany’s GTÜ organisation for ACE Magazine, Auto Bild and AutoZeitung, the tyre was awarded leading positions, while Britain’s Auto Express also lauded the new tyre’s performance characteristics within its product pages. Dunlop brand manager Andy Marfleet commented that the results “suggest that we have a real winner on our hands.”

11th March 2013/12,345 Comments/by Tyrepress Editors

Vredestein launches Ultrac Vorti R

In addition to debuting its Alnac 4G, Apollo Tyres has released its latest Vredestein-branded product at the Geneva Motor Show. This new Apollo Vredestein release is the Ultrac Vorti R, an ultra high performance tyre with an “increased focus on grip and sportiness.” The Ultrac Vorti R was developed in collaboration with Italian design house, Giugiaro.

6th March 2013/12,345 Comments/by Tyrepress Editors

Tyres ‘tremendously improved’ – and getting better

Upon announcing the outcome of its 2013 summer tyre test, held in partnership with consumer foundation Stiftung Warentest, German motorists’ organisation ADAC noted that this latest test marks the 40th anniversary of its first tyre test. In 1973 – an “exciting time” for tyres due to the replacement of cross-ply with radial models – the ADAC used an Opel Rekord 1900 as a test vehicle to evaluate 25 tyres.

4th March 2013/12,345 Comments/by Tyrepress Editors

Another tyre test honour for Michelin Energy Saver +

Following on from its highly rated performance in the ADAC summer tyre test, Michelin’s Energy Saver + has claimed a top ranking in another German auto publication. Gute Fahrt’s summer tyre test awarded the tyre top place with a "very good -" rating overall. Comparing twelve 205/55R16 W tyres on a Volkswagen Touran, Gute Fahrt judged the Energy Saver + to deliver the best all-round performance in wet and dry conditions.

27th February 2013/12,345 Comments/by Tyrepress Editors

Apollo Vredestein launches new OTR tyres at SIMA

Apollo Vredestein is launching two new product lines this week at one of Europe's largest agricultural exhibitions, SIMA 2013 in Paris. The company is displaying the new Vredestein Greentrax for lawn and ground care equipment and new Apollo tyres for industrial and construction machinery. The Greentrax range will be available from March 2013, while the new Apollo tyres will be introduced by the end of the month. This is a significant step for Apollo, since the new products represent the launch of the Apollo brand in the industrial sector in Europe.

25th February 2013/12,345 Comments/by Tyrepress Editors

GTÜ, Autoclub recommend Dunlop, Vredestein, Falken tyres

Germany’s largest officially recognised inspection organisation the Gesellschaft für Technische Überwachung (GTÜ) and Autoclub Europa (ACE) have conducted extensive summer tyre testing, giving the Dunlop BluResponse its highest recommendation, with the Vredestein Sportrac 5 in second place. One tyre receiving a “recommended” rating at a lower price point was the Falken ZIEX ZE914 Ecorun. The summer tyre received the rating by achieving an above-average environmental score at a low price to performance ratio.

21st February 2013/12,345 Comments/by Tyrepress Editors

New compounds, new machinery in Enschede

With Apollo Vredestein’s Enschede factory continuing to expand, and with the Indian parent company having invested around 100 million euros in the European company since the 2009 acquisition, Tyres & Accessories took advantage of its recent visit to Enschede for the opening of Apollo’s new global R&D centre and also have a look at the latest developments at the Dutch tyre factory.

15th January 2013/by Tyrepress Editors