Japan-based Sumitomo Rubber Industries (SRI) and Turkish firm Abdulkadir Ozcan Otomotiv have flagged off output at their tire manufacturing unit, set up through joint venture in the Central Anatolian province of ankr, Turkey.
Under the banner of Sumitomo-AKO ankiri, the manufacturing facility is set to execute a daily production of 30,000 tires by 2019, providing direct employment to 2,000, according to a report by TireBusiness. The plant had entailed an investment $500m.
The facility under the joint venture, wherein SRI has 80% stake, is instrumental towards focusing on output and sales of radial tires for passenger cars and light trucks. It was floated in 2012 with a view to singling out emerging markets in Middle East, North Africa, Russia and Europe.
Sumitomo Rubber president and CEO Ikuji Ikeda said: "We believe that supplying tires from Turkey, which is closer to our target markets and to Europe, will enable us to get enormous benefits in terms of lead time and transportation costs.
"Moreover, we expect Japanese automobile to boost their manufacturing operations in Turkey, and are looking forward to increased sales of both OE and replacement tires in the Turkish market. In this regard, Turkey has now become a strategic base for us."
