Apollo Tyres has confirmed that Hungary will be the location for its greenfield facility in Eastern Europe.

Apollo Tyres will invest €475 (approximately $611.2) million during the next five years to set up this facility in the industrial zone near Gyongyoshalasz, Hungary. Once completed, the plant will have a capacity to produce 5.5 million passenger car and light truck tires and 675,000 heavy commercial vehicle tires per annum. This facility will produce both Apollo and Vredestein branded tires, will cater to the entire European market and will complement Apollo Tyres’ existing facility in the Netherlands, said the company.

“This investment would be our first one into a greenfield facility outside of India and would be a significant milestone in the company’s international growth journey. Our aim is to create a benchmark manufacturing facility, which would further increase our competitive strength in the European market,” said Neeraj Kanwar, vice chairman and managing director, Apollo Tyres.

Construction is expected to start in the spring of 2015 with the first tire likely to roll out in early 2017, added the company.