Chinese tyre manufacturer Sailun Tires (Sailun) has set aside US$286.4 million as it plans to build new production facilities for its truck and bus radial (TBR) tyres at an existing site in Liaoning, Shenyang province. The 114,000 sqm. project will be complete two years and its additional capacity of 3 million units TBR is expected to bring in US$43.3 million/year net profit. Sailun currently manufactures 3 million units TBR annually at the Liaoning site.
The company announced that the proposed facilities will run at a 70% utilisation rate over the first year and at a 100% rate over the second year. It expects TBR demand from Brazil, Columbia, Thailand, Malaysia and Vietnam to total 1 million units in 2020; at least 30% of the new unit’s production is targeted for similar overseas markets in South America, Africa and other Asian areas.
Meanwhile, Sailun’s unaudited 2019 annual sales was reported to be US$2.2 billion, up 10% from 2018, while net profit jumped 80% year-on-year to US$172 million, apparently contributed by falling feedstock prices and the “stellar performance” at its Vietnam plant.