Halol (Gujarat) : The foundation stone for tyre major CEAT Limited’s Rs 700 crore radial plant at Halol (located 40km from Baroda) was laid by the Gujarat Chief Minister, Mr. Narendra Modi. Also present at the function were RPG Enterprises chairman, Mr. Harsh Goenka, CEAT Managing Director Mr. Paras K Chowdhary, and CEAT VP – Sales & Marketing, Mr. Arnab Banerjee. This plant, a greenfield project, will provide employment to over 1000 people in the first phase of operations, which is 2009-2010.
The first tyre from the plant will roll out by May 2010. The CEAT radial tyre plant will be spread across 125 acres of land and is expected to manufacture 4 million tyres in phase 1. Subsequently, the capacity will be increased to 12 million in the next 10 years. The investment of Rs 700 crore from CEAT will be made in two phases. In the first phase (2009-2010), Rs 500 crore will be invested and Rs 200 crore will be invested in the second phase (2011-2012).
On the occasion of the Bhoomi Pujan, Mr Narendra Modi, the Gujarat Chief Minister, stated, “We welcome CEAT into our state. CEAT is a new plant and will add to the economy of the state. We wish CEAT all the best”.
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Harsh Goenka, Vice-Chairman, CEAT Ltd. said, “With Gujarat emerging as the next auto corridor of India, CEAT is confident this plant will give us the added mileage for increasing our market share. We are thankful to the Gujarat Government for the support given to CEAT. We will re-iterate the trust shown in us by bringing in value to the state’s economy.”
He further added, “Halol was the perfect site because of the support CEAT received from the administration, the state’s friendly industrial policy and infrastructure support such as gas from GSPL, water from the Narmada canal and power from GSEB’s local substation which is located just 500 metres away from the site. Proximity to the port will help CEAT with the convenience of procuring the raw material and exporting tyres. Halol being a ‘No Octroi Zone’ will add to the low cost of production and help in focusing on a higher per man hour output.”
The new plant will manufacture Truck, Bus, Light Truck and Passenger Car Radials. A substantial percentage of the total production (25-40%) is slated for export.
