Hankook launches project to add TBR production at European site

Neu-Isenburg, Germany – Korean tire major Hankook has broken ground on a previously announced expansion project at its European production plant in Rácalmás, Hungary.

With construction due for completion in 2027, the project will eventually add 800,000 units/year production capacity for truck and bus tires at the site, said the group’s.

According to Hankook's 26 Feb release, it is investing around €540 million until 2027 in the expansion, which will lead to the creation of 450 new jobs.

The new facility is designed to produce Hankook’s premium products for long-haul and mixed application, tires for electric commercial vehicles as well as other product types.

“We will be manufacturing truck and bus tires for the European market in Europe, which will shorten our transport routes,” said Jongho Park, president and COO of Hankook Tire Europe.

Hankook’s plant in Hungary, which started up in 2007, has a current production capacity of 17 million tires/year for passenger cars and light commercial vehicles.

The new facility, it said, will also employ sustainable, renewable and recycled materials as well as 3D additive manufacturing for tread moulds.

In 2018, Hankook unveiled plans to add capacity for 550,000 units/year of TBR tires at the Hungarian site but, a year later, shelved the then €290-million project due to a market downturn. 

Hankook currently operates eight tire production sites worldwide with a total capacity of about 100 million units/year.

Image caption (from left): Jang Hyuk Moon, vice president, marketing dept, Hankook Tire Europe GmbH; Ho Taek Lim, managing director Hankook Tire Hungary Ltd; Péter Lantos, team manager, production innovation team, Hankook Tire Hungary Ltd; Jongseon Ahn, president Hankook Tire & Technology; Tamás Fridrich, deputy project leader, factory expansion task project, Hankook Tire Hungary Ltd; Min Soo Choi, project leader, factory expansion task project, Hankook Tire Hungary Ltd; Hyung-min Yoo, vice president, corporate strategy & innovation dept, Hankook Tire & Technology; Joon Ki Kim, project design & construction management / factory expansion task project, Hankook Tire Hungary Ltd.