Yokohama Rubber is ‘winning bidder’ for Euro Tire assets

Tokyo – Yokohama Rubber Co. is "considering the acquisition of Euro Tire Manufacturing in Romania," the Japanese tire manufacturing group has confirmed to ERJ.

In a written statement, YRC said: "We were awarded as the winning bidder of the immovable and movable assets of the company under bankruptcy procedures according to the applicable rules and regulations."

The goal, explained the group statement, is to increase off-the-road (OTR) tire production capacity in Europe.

As ERJ previously reported, Bucharest-based Euro Tyres Manufacturing SRL filed for insolvency in May 2018, amid hopes of rescue options, including via merger or acquisition.

The cause of the bankruptcy “wasn’t materials costs or weak demand, it was just a bad contract,” a company official commented at the time.

Eurotire produced OTR radial tires at its facility in Drobeta Turnu Severin, Romania, and bias play tires in Dniepropetrovsk, Ukraine.

Prior to the bankruptcy situation, the company had also been a supplier to Continental Tire under an off-take agreement.

YRC has been highly active in developing its global OTR business over the past couple of years, not least via its €2.1-billion acquisition of Trelleborg Wheel Systems and more recent $905-milliion swoop for Goodyear’s OTR tire business.

Over recent months, the Japanese group has also announced plans to close a 90-employee farm tire production unit in Spartanburg, South Carolina, a 270-employee OTR tire plant in Prague and another in Hadera, Israel.

YRC acquired ownership of the 72-year-old Israeli OTR tire plant, which employs 474 people, through its €1-billion purchase of Alliance Tire Group in 2016.