NOKIA, Finland (Sept. 23)—Nokian Tyres P.L.C. is proceeding with a planned expansion of its new passenger tire plant in Russia, signing contracts worth $26.9 million to build and commission a mixing department and warehouse.
Nokian, which inaugurated production Sept. 22 at the site in Vsevolozhsk, expects to produce about 300,000 units this year and reach the first stage capacity of 1.9 million next year, primarily for the Russian market.
The mixing department and warehouse projects are expected on-stream by August. The mixing department will occupy about 217,000 square feet, with the warehouse covering more than 178,000 square feet, Nokian said.
The mixing department investment will support a doubling of capacity at the plant by 2008. Nokian budgeted $180 million to build and outfit the factory.