Tatneft, Marangoni tire JV to begin operations in Q1
NIZHNEKAMSK. Dec 4 (Interfax) - LLC KaMaRetread, a joint venture between Italy's Marangoni and Russian oil major Tatneft to reinforce truck tires with solid metal cord, will begin operations in the first quarter of 2015, KaMaRetread Director Ruslan Khayrullin told journalists Thursday.
He said capacity would be 40,000 tires per year. A total of 8,000 tires will be reinforced in the first year of operation, and project capacity should be reached in two or three years. The cost of reinforcement should be an estimated 60% of the cost of a new tire. The life of the tire will be doubled after reinforcement.
The director of Tatneft-Neftekhim Management Company, Anvar Vakhitov told Interfax that investments in the project would total 100 million rubles in proportion to investors' stake. He added that the creation of the project stems from the fact that the first tires reinforced with solid metal cord are supposed to appear that have used up their 250,000 kilometer lifespan. The director also said that capacity can be increased if necessary.
Vakhitov added that the plan is currently at 80% capacity, which is due to demand from the market. In addition, the rubber mixing floor is at 100%, and excess raw materials go towards the production of car tires.
In 2015, around 1 million reinforced tires are planned to be produced, which should be 10% more than last year's figure. Vakhitov said 60% of the tires are being purchased by Russian truck manufacturer OJSC Kamaz , while the rest are being sold on the secondary market.