Sailun Jinyu to become Cooper Tire joint venture partner

Qingdao, China — Sailun Jinyu Group Co. Ltd. has agreed to acquire a 35% ownership stake in Cooper Tire & Rubber Co.'s Qingdao Ge Rui Da Rubber Co. Ltd. (GRT) joint venture in Qingdao.

Financial details were not disclosed.

This deal will extend Cooper's relationship with Sailun Jinyu, which struck an offtake agreement in February with Cooper covering production of Cooper's Roadmaster-brand truck/bus tires at its operation in Tay Ninh, Vietnam.

Cooper Tire acquired 65% of GRT in 2016 for about $97 million (€82.2 million). The firm sources its Roadmaster radial truck and bus tires from GRT's plant in Qingdao.

"We are pleased to become a partner to Cooper in the GRT joint venture and admire the work that has been done at the facility to make it operational quickly and with a focus on quality and safety," Sailun Jinyu Chairman and Presient ZhongXue Yuan said.

"We intend to continue the great work being done at GRT and will lend our considerable tire industry expertise to drive further success at GRT in partnership with Cooper."

Cooper has an existing relationship with Sailun Jinyu through an offtake agreement with its operation in Tay Ninh, Vietnam, to produce Roadmaster truck/bus tires.

Cooper CEO and President Brad Hughes lauded GRT, saying it has "been a highly successful partnership for Cooper, ramping up quickly and producing high-quality TBR tires under the Roadmaster and Cooper brands for global markets.”

Sailun Jinyu is purchasing the share from Qingdao Yiyuan Investment Co. Ltd., which had purchased the assets of the then-idled Qingdao Guang Ming Tire Co. Ltd. in 2014 and revived the business under the GRT name.

“The partnership with QYI has been a productive one, and we expect a smooth transition to our new partner, Sailun Jinyu Group,” Hughes said.