CHONBURI, Thailand (Feb. 9, 2015) — A Feb. 1 fire destroyed a number of warehouses adjacent to Linglong International Tire (Thailand)'s plant in Chonburi, but the factory — which opened one year ago — suffered no damage, according to parent Shandong Linglong Tire Co. Ltd.
Thai officials have imposed a 30-day work stoppage at the plant to allow for safety inspections, but company officials said recently they are hoping the restriction will be lifted earlier after a “qualified inspection” by local government.
An unspecified amount of tires stored in the warehouses was destroyed. A portion of these were intended for U.S. customers, a spokesman said. Local news reports put the damage estimate at $40 million.
In a prepared statement, Shandong Linglong assured all customers that their molds at the Thai plant were not affected by the fire and said there were no injuries or loss of life associated with the blaze.
Shandong Linglong customer Horizon Tire Co. said it does not expect the fire and production interruption to impact distribution of its Crosswind brand, which it sources from the Thai plant.
The $115 million car and light truck tire factory in Thailand's Rayong Province is rated at 2 million tires a year initially. Longer term the capacity could reach 10 million tires annually.
Linglong itself sources its Green-Max brand from the new plant.