India's SRF to acquire Thai tyre cord maker Baroda

New Delhi, India - Indian tire cord maker SRF Ltd. is buying Thai Baroda Industries Ltd., a Rayong, Thailand-based tire cord maker, to help it expand into Southeast Asian markets outside of India.

SRF, India's largest tire cord maker, will pay about $23.5 million to buy Thai Baroda, which operates 12,000 metric tons of annual capacity for dipped nylon tire cord fabric at a 13-year-old plant in Rayong's Map-Ta-Put industrial estate.

Thai Baroda is a joint venture company involving Thai and Indian investors, including Baroda Rayon Corp. of India. The venture reported sales of $50 million last year.

The deal is subject to review by Thai authorities, SRF said, and therefore should take a few months to complete.

“We have always aspired to become a global leader in our business space and this acquisition is a significant step in that direction," said SRF managing director Ashish Bharat Ram, in a prepared statement. Having a unit in Thailand will give SRF access to the fast-growing ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) market, he said.

The acquisition will raise SRF's annual capacity to 65,000 tons a year, which SRF claims will make it the third largest tyre cord fabric processor in Asia and fifth largest in the world. SRF operates four plants in India and one wholly owned subsidiary unit in Dubai.

Besides tyre cord, SRF Ltd is active in technical textiles, fluorochemicals, packaging films and fluoro specialities.