JK Tyre completed the expansion of its manufacturing facility in Mysore last week, increasing its capacity to produce radial tyres to 8 lakh units per year. The company has so far invested Rs 315 crore in the plant’s expansion, and will put in another 200 crore to further scale up its production capacity by 2 lakh units over the next eighteen months. The Mysore plant will produce both radial tyres and tubeless radials meant for trucks and buses. JK Tyre Chairman Mr H S Singhania said that the company would invest Rs 1,200 crore in the next 3-4 years to meet growing demand, which would also include the setting up of a new plant in south India. Eighty per cent of India’s bus and truck radial tyres are produced by JK Tyre, which has four plants in Rajasthan, Haryana and Karnataka and another three around Mexico City.
The company bounced back this year after an unsatisfactory performance in 2008-09. It reported a profit of Rs 59.5 crore in the second quarter of 2009-10, compared to a loss of Rs 32.3 crore in the corresponding period last year. This is largely due to the astounding resurgence of the auto sector this year, with multiple new launches in the passenger car segment. JK Tyre has also benefited greatly from the increasing radialisation in the bus/truck segment.
