The Sameer Africa tyre plant in Nairobi, Kenya is being dismantled, with equipment being relocated to India, according to local news reports. This follows the cessation of production back in September 2016 following an announcement last June that that plant would close due to high competition from cheap imported tyres. The company did not specify if the equipment was being sold or used to establish manufacturing in India.
Africa is a market that presents tyre manufacturers with both problems and opportunities. Theoretically, the potential may be there for a thriving industry and market, yet unreliable infrastructure, taxation issues and political instability are all features of the African tyre industry landscape that make operations complicated. However, despite such hurdles, the situation in some areas is improving.
In mid-July Dunlop Nigeria announced the planned closure of its factory, claiming tariff reductions on imported goods as a deciding factor. In early 2007 the Nigerian government reduced the tariff on imported truck and bus tyres from 40 per cent to 10 per cent, undermining, in Dunlop’s view, the investments it had made in expanding its radial production programme.
Sameer Africa recently raised its tyre prices by between four and six per cent, the Nairobi Nation reports. However, price increases are unlikely to help sales of the manufacturer’s Yana brand. Local news reports that stiff competition from cheap imports, especially from the Korea, Egypt and South Africa have left the company at a disadvantage, following the price increase. “Kenya has no competitive advantage, and you can get any tyre you want from China at any price,” managing director Eric Kimani told journalists.
The influx of imported tyres from these destinations reportedly increased significantly in 2005, following the introduction of the East African Community’s (EAC) Common External Tariff (CET). Under the CET, the EAC member states (Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania) agreed to a common tax rate of 10 per cent on imports of new rubber tyres for buses and lorries. Initially, the import duty on tyres stood at between 25 and 35 per cent as a way of protecting local manufacturers.
The company formerly know as Firestone East Africa was given a new logo and rename Sameer Africa at a ceremony in Nairobi. The new company will operate as an independent tyre maker, according to reports by Nairobi’s The Nation newspaper.
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