BRUSSELS (April 7, 2005) — Continental A.G. has secured a $51 million loan from the European Investment Bank to help finance the construction of its passenger and light truck tire plant in Brazil.
The new plant, in the Camaçari Petrochemical Industry Park in Salvador de Bahia in northeastern Brazil, will have annual capacity at start-up of 4 million units, the bulk of which will be exported to North America.
Conti has budgeted $260 million for the whole project, which includes capacity for medium radial truck tires by 2008.
Continental do Brasil Produtos Automotivos Ltda. broke ground in October on the 1.1 million-sq.-ft. factory, which should be on stream by year-end 2007, the parties said.