Global revenues jump at Apollo Tyres, Indian profits nearly double

ERJ staff report (DS)

Mumbai, India -- Apollo Tyres reported big increases in consolidated sales and profits for the three months ended 30 June 2009. The company said net sales were up by 24 percent on the figures from a year ago, to Rs 16 300 million (euro 237 million) for the three month period. The company did not release consolidated profit figures, but said operating profit in the indian operations almost doubled to Rs 1631 million compared with Rs 866 million a year earlier. Sales in India grew by 9.7 percent to Rs 11.8 billion from Rs 10.7 billion.

These figures include a contribution from Vredestein Banden BV, which was acquired on 15 May. That company has now been re-named Apollo Vredestein BV.

Speaking at the shareholders' meeting, Onkar Kanwar, chairman said, "The year gone by has been one of the most difficult that any of us has seen in our lifetimes."

He said work is continuing at Apollo's greenfield car and truck tyre facility near Chemmai. The first tyres should roll off the production line before the end of 2009, he noted. This plant will make Apollo the largest producer of passenger car tyres in India, he claimed. The plant will have a capacity of 8,000 passenger car radial and 3,000 truck-bus radial tyres per day.

Kanwar said the OTR facility built in conjunction with BEML went on stream in March 2009 and is currently making speciality OTR tyres for that customer and for export markets.

Within India, Apollo said Apollo Tyres' India Operations has reduced the number of days of raw material inventory by 37% and finished goods stocks by 15%. There has also been a 40% decrease in the number of days for current debtors.

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