Romania ramp-up, efficiency top priorities for new Nokian Tyres leader

Nokia, Finland – Nokian Tyres plc is focusing on the fast ramp-up of its recently opened factory in Romania and improving profitability, according to President and CEO Paolo Pompei who took over at the beginning of the year.

Having put “many challenges” behind it in the last few years, the Finnish tire maker will be concentrating on improving productivity and cost efficiency while strengthening brand and consumer focus to drive profitable growth.

“In 2025, we continue to focus on growth and expand production capacity as planned,” said Pompei in a Q&A marking his 70 days as leader of Nokian.

In the passenger car tire segment, Nokian said it will focus on growth in Central and South Europe and in North America, while maintaining “strong position” in the Nordic countries.

As part of this, Nokian will continue the ramping up of production facilities in Oradea, Romania, and Dayton, Tennessee, explained the company leader.

“With dedicated production facilities close to customers and consumers, we are building a more agile business model to better serve our key markets,” Pompei said.

Last year, Nokian completed the investment phase at its US factory by opening a new finished goods warehouse near the factory.

While volumes have increased at the factory, Pompei said he wanted to speed up the ramp-up of production and increase the efficiency of operations.

“Even though the end of 2024 was particularly soft for us in North America and there is certain uncertainty in the market, I see great potential for Nokian Tyres in North America,” he said.

Nokian, Pompei said, must leverage the full potential of its US factory by “continuously enhancing our operations and market presence in North America.”

Elsewhere, the company leader said Nokian’s factory in Finland will serves as the key location for R&D, prototyping, testing and manufacturing of more specialised tires, in addition to normal volume production.

Nokian, he said, will continue modernising the facility for both passenger car tires and heavy tires, to equip them with automation and robotics as well as latest technologies.

In heavy tires, Pompei said the company had opportunities to grow through new products and customers.

Nokian’s distribution arm Vianor will support the group’s sales and brand positioning in the Nordic countries.

In terms of profitability, the Finnish tire maker said it would focus on improving productivity as one of its “main goals in 2025”.

“We put even more focus on how we use our money. We are also looking at our SGA structure to see how we can be more efficient”, Pompei said.

Efforts will go towards improving operational efficiency and strict cost control, together with increasing sales volume and average sales price to enhance profitability.

For branding, Nokian said it will increase brand awareness and consumer focus especially in high value segments such as winter tires.

“We have a lot to gain by building brand demand and brand awareness among consumers in the markets where we are not yet so well known,” according to Pompei.

“We aim to be a premium brand, recognised for the things we are at our best such as safety, sustainability and innovation,” he added.