Apollo looking to set up factory in Asia outside India

[caption id="attachment_734" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Apollo'Chennai Plant has a production capacity of 500 metric tonnes/day[/caption]

Indian tyre manufacturer Apollo Tyres is studying the possibility to set up its first tyre manufacturing facility in Indonesia, Vietnam or Thailand. The new manufacturing plant will not only support the automobile industry of the region but will also cover regions beyond that. According to Satish Sharma, the new facility in Asia will have big capacity and big economies of scale.

The company achieved a total sales of $2.08 billion in the fiscal year that ended in march. The strategy and key function of manufacturing, sales and marketing is implemented with the direction of Satish Sharma. He said the company's vision is to be a significant player in the global tyre industry and the manufacturer is thinking about establishing its own footprint or might get into merger and acquisition deals.

The company's aim is to achieve both organic and inorganic growth. Currently, Apollo tyres are available in 100 countries around the world. Satish Sharma said, "We have a sales and marketing subsidiary in Thailand to be in charge of the ASEAN bloc. We have also a subsidiary in Dubai to take care of the Middle East, East and West Africa, and in Johannesburg to look after South Africa and its neighboring markets."

ASEAN bloc contributes a lot to the company's global strategy and the tyre maker expects to increase its ASEAN sales to $100 million in 18 months. Apollo Tyres is also targeting to capture 10 per cent share in the Thailand tyre market by 2020. In order to achieve this, the company will have to double its current sales in Thailand.

Export from the ASEAN region contributes around 11 per cent and 35 per cent to sales and total exports, respectively. The company is aiming to increase the contribution of ASEAN region by 15 and 50 per cent to sales and total exports, respectively. Three years ago, the manufacturer conducted a preliminary study about the investment opportunities in the ASEAN region and found Thailand to be very attractive.