Nexen mulls €1bn tire plant project in North America

Seoul – Nexen Tire is studying the construction of a greenfield tire manufacturing facility in North America, with a view to start-up within the next six years.

The Korean tire maker is investigating eight southeastern US states for the location of the  $1.3-billion project, according to its 18 May stock exchange filing.

Seoul-based Nexen expects the factory to be operational by 2028-2029, as part of the strategy to “establish global production infrastructure”.

The move, said the company, would reinforce its global supply-chain capabilities, in response to a changing business environment.

For 2023, the Korean manufacturer aims to increase sales to KRW2,800 trillion (€1.9 billlion), with an operating margin of 6-8%.

This would build on Nexen's 'record' consolidated sales of KRW 2,597 billion in 2022, up 25% compared to the year before.

For the year ended 31 December 2022, the company recorded an operating loss of KRW54.3 billion.