NOKIA, Finland (Feb. 12, 2009)—Nokian Tyres P.L.C. has put on hold indefinitely plans to participate in a tire manufacturing joint venture in Kazakhstan because of “tighter financing conditions.”
The project—a $230 million joint venture with the Kazakhstanian conglomerate Ordabasy Corp. J.S.C. for a passenger tire factory in Astana, Kazakhstan—was signed in October 2007 and was supposed to come on stream during 2009, according to Nokian.
The project may still be launched, the firm said, but in late 2010 at the earliest. Nokian was to own 10 percent of the venture with an option for up to 50 percent.
Nokian did not say what, if any, progress has been made since the joint venture agreement signing in 2007. Nokian has agreed to return Ordabasy's advance payment of $15.5 million for technical support.
The factory was being engineered for an annual capacity of 4 million car tires.