Bekaert targets growth in rubber reinforcement unit as core business

Brussels – Bekaert SA has set out growth plans for its rubber reinforcement business, which it says serves all top 30 tire manufacturers globally.

In its integrated annual report, Bekaert said it aims to maintain market leadership in the segment through innovation, joint development programmes and long-term supply deals.

According to the Belgian steel products group, it invested €188 million in property, plant and equipment to support organic growth in 2023.

The largest investments, it stated, related to the start-up of the group’s greenfield rubber reinforcement plant in Vietnam and expansions in India.

At the same time, the group said it was “constantly reviewing our current portfolio and footprint for competitiveness and future opportunities.”

Following a strategic review, Bekaert closed its rubber reinforcement plant in Chongqing, China last year, helping it ‘optimise’ mix and footprint in the country.

In its annual report, Bekaert said it expected changing requirements from electrification and circularity to create growth opportunities in tire reinforcement and steel wire markets.

In particular, “safer, lighter and sustainable” materials and increased recycled steel content in rubber reinforcement are expected to advance its position in the new-mobility segment.

For instance, Bekaert said it had extended the ‘super-tensile’ and ‘ultra-tensile’ steel cord for electric vehicle (EV) tires.

The “ever thinner and stronger filaments allow tire makers to produce tires with lower weight, thinner plies, and lower rolling resistance" it noted.

This, in turn, improves the battery life of EVs and reduces the CO2 emissions of conventional fuel vehicles by up to 5%.

According to Bekaert, the ST/UT cords delivered CO2 savings totalling “at least 2.5 million tonnes in 2023.”

Further environmental benefits stem from TAWI – the group’s ternary alloy wire coating on tire cord filaments – said to allow the removal of cobalt from rubber compounds.

With an overall €2.0 billion sales, the rubber reinforcement segment contributed to 43% of the total Bekaert revenue in 2023.

Segment sales were down 10% year-on-year, compared to €2.22 billion reported in 2022, while earnings (EBITDA) fell 4.5% year-on-year to €249.1 million.