2 Jun 2004
From Rubber & Plastics News
Nokia, Finland-Nokian Tyres PLC has broken ground in Vsevolozhsk, Russia, on a tyre plant it expects will be producing tyres by next year. Nokian has budgeted $63.5 million for the factory near St. Petersburg, Russia, which will have a startup annual capacity of 1.5 million passenger car tyres by 2006.
The initial construction phase will yield a facility spanning 22 600 square metres, sufficient to accommodate a capacity of 4 million tyres annually, Nokian said. Capacity will be expanded gradually, eventually reaching 8 million units by 2016.
The plant is designed to be as automated as possible as well as have minimal environmental impact, Nokian said. It will make Nokian-branded passenger car tyres, which will be sold primarily in the growing Russian market. In the initial phase, the facility will employ about 200, most of whom will be Russian.
Nokian chose Lemcon Ltd., a subsidiary of Lemminkainen Group, to build the plant. The cost of construction will be nearly $26 million.
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