The company is in discussions with consultants in the U.S. and Europe and, according to vice president of sales and marketing Arnab Banerjee, they most likely will sign an agreement with one of them within the next two or three months.
However, he added that this does not mean the Indian tyremaker’s earlier plans to tie up with leading international tyre majors for technical know how have been shelved. Ceat has been talking with a number of companies, including Pirelli, and will continue to do so. “We decided to work on the technology on our own in parallel so that we did not waste time in order to enter the market with our product range,” Banerjee explained.
The chosen consultant will work with Ceat’s research and development department on new TBR projects, including the establishment of a greenfield facility for TBR production. A number of potential sites have been shortlisted for this new factory, which will be ready to begin production in between two and two and a half years. The facility is projected to cost between £60 and £70 million.
In the meantime, Ceat will service the TBR market with two tyre ranges. The upper end of the market is to be catered for with TBR tyres sourced from Pirelli factories in Egypt and Turkey – Ceat currently imports some 600 to 700 tyres each month from these sources. An ‘economy’ range, comprised of tyres purchased from Chinese manufacturers, will also be released.
