Apollo, which bought Dunlop International and its Regal brand at the end of 2006, has reportedly made the expansion plans following a successful response to test marketing its Regal brand truck and bus radials.

"Our current production capacity at the Vadodara plant is 300 tyres per day. Considering the market response, we will be doubling it to about 600 tyres a day," Apollo Tyres joint managing director and COO Neeraj Kanwar told local newspapers. He said the company expected to complete the expansion in the next five to six months.

While the production numbers are small compared with any European market, they do appear to demonstrate a growing interest in running radial tyres in the enormous emerging Indian tyre market. "In terms of sales we are running full capacity and expect to continue to do so," Kanwar added. (Tyres & Accessories/Staffordshire, U.K.)