Michelin Romania, which operates two tyre plants and a metallic cord production facility, posted turnover worth 340 million euros in 2007, up by around 11% against the 306.8 million euros derived in the previous year.
The growth rate of the French tyre manufacturer was lower in 2007 against previous years, when it surged by at least 35-40%.
Michelin Romania's growth is not in line with that of the group at a European level, after sales advanced by 6.1% and reached 8.5 billion euros, higher than the 4.6% rate registered in 2006, according to the company's annual financial report.
Michelin Romania consists of three plants, a tyre reconditioning workshop, and a local commercial network. The company entered the local market in 2001, after it acquired the Tofan Victoria Floresti plant, which manufactures car tyres, and Silvania Zalau, which produces industrial tyres. Since its market debut, the company's investments have exceeded 220 million euros and have entailed, apart from plant modernisation, the construction of the RomSteel Cord Zalau production centre.
The plant in Floresti, which manufactures Michelin, BF Goodrich, Kormoran and Kleber brands, also produces tyres for Automobile Dacia, with 14% of the 4 million-unit annual production destined to the Logan model.
Growth on the tyre market failed to exceed 10% last year, and this year the main players on the market estimate an 8% rise, to around 2.4-2.5 million units.
Leading international players Continental and Pirelli are also present on the market, while Goodyear Dunlop has yet to open a plant, but is present with a sales division. Continental operates 5 plants in Romania, the main one being in Timisoara, where it manufactures 16 million tyres each year.
Pirelli, which has created a sort of an industrial centre in Oltenia (Southern Romania) with investments, owns a tyre plant in Slatina, which is expected to produce 3.9 million units this year, as well as a metallic cord plant in partnership with Continental.
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