18 Mar 2022 15:49

Pirelli suspends investment in Russia

MOSCOW. March 18 (Interfax) - Pirelli has suspended investment in its tire plants in the Russian cities of Voronezh and Kirov, the Italian tire manufacturer said in a statement, posted on its website.

"Activities of the factories in Russia will be progressively limited to those needed to guarantee the financing of salaries and social services for employees in Russia," it said."

"Investments in the local market, excluding those linked to security, have been halted," it said.

Pirelli is supporting the Ukrainian population with a donation of 500,000 euros and facilitating the collection of funds among employees.

Pirelli operates two tire production facilities in Russia, in Kirov and Voronezh.

Pirelli took over JSC Voronezh Tire Plant as part of a joint venture with state corporation Rostec in 2012. The plant is one of Russia's biggest and makes tires foe the domestic market and for Europe and the CIS.

Kirov Tire Production Complex LLC was created on the basis of Kirov Tire Plant JSC. The plant has since the end of 2011 been part of a joint venture between Pirelli and the state corporation Rostec, which fell under UK sanctions after the start of a military operation in Ukraine. In 2017, the production of passenger tires was spun off into a separate legal entity - Kirov Tire Production Complex LLC. JSC Kirov Tire Plant continued production of tires for special purposes. It currently produces 6 million car tires per year under the Pirelli brand.

According to SPARK-Interfax, Kirov Tire Production Complex LLC was registered on May 2, 2017. It is 100%-owned by Pirelli Tire Russia LLC (Moscow), which also owns 100% of the shares of Kirov Tire Plant JSC.

Pirelli Tire Russia LLC is owned by Rostec Group of Companies (25.01%), a private limited liability company E-Volution Tire B.V. (Netherlands, 65%) and analand Limited (Cyprus, 9.99%).