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RUSSIA
First Retreading Plant Planned for Russia’s Far East
A first plant for the retreading of truck tyres in Russia’s Far Eastern federal district is slated to be launched in the second half of 2018 near the city of Khabarovsk, a recent statement from the regional government informed.
The investor, LLC Victoria, is seeking residency in the so- called “territory of the priority development”, known as TOR, named ‘Khabarovsk’, where it will be able to enjoy a preferential tax regime and some breaks on the import of raw materials.
It is important that the construction of the plant is listed in the materials of the III Eastern Economic Forum, an international forum held each year in Vladivostok for the purpose of encouraging foreign investment in the Russian Far East. This means that the regional government wants to attract foreign investors to pump their money into the new facility.
To be granted with a residency in TOR Khabarovsk the investor had to prove that his project has some importance for the regional, or even better, for the federal economy. The materials of the Eastern Economic Forum said that there is a strong demand for retreaded tyres in Russia’s Far East, primarily because of the high prices of new tyres.
Nikolay Nazarov, the general director of LLC Victoria, commented that the design production capacity of the plant is 10,900 truck tyres per year. The estimated investment cost is Rub 55 million (US$1 million), and the company is ready to invest its own funds to cover 25 per cent of this amount. The rest of the money should be provided by investors and in the form of loans.
At the moment, the regional government has taken on the obligation to prepare the infrastructure and communications at the
construction site. This should be ready by April-May 2018, when LLC Victoria plans to start building the plant.
If all goes well, the opening ceremony will take place in autumn 2018, Nazarov anticipates.
According to the materials of the Eastern Economic Forum, in Khabarovsk Krai only there are nearly 75,000 truck tyres available for retreading, and this figure grows from year to year. At the same time, the plant, when it is opened, in fact, will become a sole retreader in this part of the country, so it would be able to collect the best casings from all over neighbouring regions.
Nazarov promised that the retreaded tyres will cost 50-70 per cent less than the top new European brands and will be able provide 1.5 times more service, as compared to Chinese tyres. He did not reveal further details on the project, including where the company plans to
buy the equipment from, but he was very encouraged about the prospects of the domestic market. It is believed that there are numerous transport companies in the Far East, willing to use retreaded tyres. Additionally, Nazarov noted that he expects that the entire production cycle will be wasteless, as all rubber accumulated at the plant will be processed for the manufacturing of other rubber products. He has not mentioned, however, whether he plans to install any waste-processing line within the plant, or to deliver the rubber to some side processing facility in the region.