President Gotabaya Rajapaksa will open Southeast Asia’s largest tyre manufacturing facility – Ferentino Tyre (Pvt) Limited – in the Wagawatte Export Processing Zone today.
Ferentino Tyre Chairman Nandana Lokuwithana said the project estimated at US 250 million, will boost exports while creating thousands of employment opportunities.
The manufacturing facility has been established on land in extent of above 160 acres in the Wagawatte Export Processing Zone and the company plans to purchase raw material locally for the radial tyre production. Lokuwithana who is also Chairman of Ceylon Steel Corporation said that the facility which is destined to roll out a new page in the industrial sector of the county is aimed at capitalizing the European market.
“We also intend to source our entire requirement of rubber locally thereby empowering the rubber farmers,” he added.
The country’s rubber production is only 12,000 tons per annum and the government is also geared to increase that quantity.
Lokuwithana said that the company is planning to produce three million passenger car radials (PCR) per annum initially including a specialized category for SUVs mainly targeting the US and European markets.
He added that eight percent of the products of the facility will be exported to European and US markets.
