OVERSEAS NEWS JV formed to support India tyre market Stamford Tyres forms India venture; it will own 40% of Falken Tyre India, with partner Sumitomo holding the rest.
“This JV is another major milestone for Stamford Tyres and signifies the next step in our long-standing relationship with Sumitomo,” said Wee Kok Wah, president of Stamford Tyres, which distributes Falken tyres in markets such as Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia and South Africa.
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yre and wheel distributor Stamford Tyres Corporation is forming a $12.3 million joint venture (JV) company with Sumitomo Rubber Asia (Tyre), a subsidiary of Sumitomo Rubber Industries (SRI), to cater to India’s fastgrowing replacement-tyre market. Under the agreement, Sumitomo will hold a 60 per cent stake in the JV company - Falken Tyre India (FTI ) - while Stamford Tyres will hold 40 per cent. In a release to the Singapore Exchange (SGX), Stamford Tyres said that its initial investment for the joint venture is estimated at some $2.5 million. Internal resources will fund the investment -which could eventually rise to about $4.9 million.
This new joint venture will allow the two companies to leverage on their expertise to address the needs in the Indian market and tap onto this market’s huge potential. 24
on their expertise to address the needs in the Indian market and tap onto this market’s huge potential,” he concluded.
Nexen on course to fulfill corporate vision Nexen is investing over AUD $1 billion over the next six years to complete it’s newest tyre plant that will thrust the Korean tyre giant in to the mix of the world’s top tyre manufacturers.
Stamford’s Firenza SV053 tyre
“Together, we are confident that our entry into the Indian replacement tyre market will generate long-term growth for both companies and possibly open up more opportunities for collaboration in the future,” Mr. Wee said. To be headquartered in India, FTI will start operations from April next year, leveraging on Sumitomo’s tyre technologies and Stamford ‘s distribution network. FTI’s presence in India will also enable Stamford Tyres to strengthen the brand name of its Falken tyres in the Indian market. Yasutaka Li, director and senior executive officer of SRI, said that India is a market with huge potential. “We are delighted to continue our partnership with Stamford Tyres - which has a strong distribution track record - as part of our group’s expansion into new markets,” he said. “This new joint venture will allow the two companies to leverage
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exen Tyre’s newest plant in Changnyeong, Korea began operations earlier in the year, opening production lines 20 months after the groundbreaking in June 2010. The tyre maker plans to invest a further AUD $1 billion to complete a further five extensions to the plant by 2018. Some 500 employees are working at the facility, which will produce approximately 3 million tyres this year. By 2018, it will be employing 2,000 people who will be producing an annual capacity of 21 million units. Nexen Tyre’s CEO Hyun Bong Lee said that everyone at the company was putting their hearts and souls into the new industrial complex in Changnyeong to fulfill the corporate vision of becoming a global top 10 tyre manufacturer. “Together with the original Yangsan Plant and Qingdao Plant, the annual volume will reach 60 million units, three times more than today’s capacity,” he said. The plant is expected to produce world-class ultra high performance