Nokian raises €150m to advance Romania tire factory

Nokia, Finland – Nokian Tyres has signed a €150 million loan agreement with the European Investment Bank (EIB) to progress its investment in Romania.

The eight-year loan will support Nokian’s investment project in Oradea, Romania, where the company is in advanced stages of building a “zero-CO2” tire factory.

The loan, said Nokian 31 July, aims to further improve the sustainability of the company’s operations by financing advanced tire manufacturing technologies at the Romanian facility.

The €600-million plant in Oradea, near the Hungarian border, is claimed to be “the world’s first zero CO2 emission tire factory.”

The factory will have a “holistic approach to sustainability, including the use of solely CO2 free energy sources and energy-efficient and highly automated processes,” said Leena Kaipainen, VP, group treasurer.

Nokian rolled out the first tire at the Oradea unit in early July. Once fully ramped up, the project aims to produce 6 million units of passenger car tires, with expansion potential in the future.