CLERMONT-FERRAND, France — Group Michelin is continuing to realign its manufacturing base for truck tires and related semi-finished products, the tire maker announced on April 24 in a first quarter financial statement.
Measures include "the forthcoming conversion of the plants in Olsztyn, Poland, and Shenyang, China to passenger car tire production and the shutdown of metal reinforcement operations at the Shanghai, China facility," the tire maker said.
Operational since 1968, the Olsztyn plant has the capacity to manufacture more than 223,000 tons per year of passenger car, light truck, truck & bus, agricultural as well as industrial tires.
The Shenyang tire factory, operational since 2013, has the capacity to produce more than 200,000 tons of passenger car, light truck and truck and bus tires.
Michelin announced the conversion project in China last year, with the planned investment of $31 million at the site to increase the production of high-performance radial tires by 1.3 million units per year.
As part of the project, the group said it aimed to dismantle three existing vulcanization production lines for truck and bus tires and make adjustments to the remaining mixing production lines.
Once completed, the Chinese factory will have the capacity to produce 1.1 million truck and bus tires and 17.3 million car tires annually.
