Sumitomo Rubber investing €80m in South Africa tire factory

Ladysmith, South Africa – Sumitomo Rubber South Africa (SRSA) is investing ZAR1.7 billion (€84 million) in its production facility in Ladysmith to support tire demand in South Africa and the region.

The expansion programme will see the manufacturer strengthening production and modernising the plant, said Ebrahim Patel, South Africa's minister of trade and industry.

The investment “will provide a boost to the local [economy]… while supporting local jobs,” the minister added during a 2 Oct ceremony to celebrate SRSA’s 50th anniversary.

Noting that Dunlop is a household brand name in South Africa, Patel said one out of every five car tires on South African roads is made by Sumitomo Rubber's Ladysmith plant.

The new investment "is a signal of the confidence that international investors have in South Africa and to the progress we have made with the South African ‘automotive masterplan’,” Patel continued.

The ‘masterplan’, he explained, is a collaborative initiative whereby the government provides incentives for both the assembly of cars and the production of components in South Africa.

In line with the objectives of the ‘masterplan’, South Africa’s government has taken action against “unfair trade practices that undermine local production and employment.”

Patel. for instance, cited the approval of anti-dumping duties ranging from 7% to 43.6% on dumped imports of passenger, truck, and bus tires from China.

The minister also emphasised the government’s commitment to working with investors to grow and develop the South African automotive industry.

SRSA's latest round of investment follows previous phases of expansion at the South African facility.

In 2018, SRSA launched a ZAR2.1-billion, truck and bus radial (TBR) facility at the Ladysmith site, primarily to support the local market.

That project followed an earlier expansion programme, which saw the company modernising its passenger car tire manufacturing operation there.

Operational since October 2013, the Ladysmith plant manufactures passenger car, light truck and TBR tires with a nameplate capacity of 1,700 tonnes a month.

Tires manufactured at the site go to market under the brands of Dunlop, Sumitomo and Falken.