8 Aug 2006
Gurgaon, India -- Apollo Tyres Ltd. has picked a site in India´s Tamil Nadu state for a new radial passenger, light and medium truck tire plant, to be built at a cost of $112 million (€87.2 million) over five years.
Apollo Tyres plans to acquire 135 acres (54.6 ha) in the Oragadam Industrial Park near Sriperumbudur, Tamil Nadu, for the plant, which would be Apollo's fourth in India.
Apollo will invest about $65 million in the coming two to three years during the plant´s first stage, and $47 million thereafter in the second-stage buildup.
The company did not disclose projected capacity or employment.
Apollo said it chose a site in Tamil Nadu because of its proximity to India's rubber growing region, the presence of automobile manufacturers in the state, good connectivity to the domestic market and proximity to a port for ease of import of raw materials and export of finished products.
With annual sales of about $680 million last year, Apollo Tyres is among the 20 largest tire makers worldwide.
Earlier this year it spent $62 million to acquire Dunlop Tyres International of South Africa, which is expected to bring about $250 million in additional sales to Apollo´s ledgers.
From Rubber & Plastics News (A Crain publication)
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