WATERVILLE, Nova Scotia—Michelin North America Inc. will expand production capacity for wide-base truck tires at its Waterville factory in the next four to five years, a $73 million project.
The expansion will create about 50 jobs at the 31-year-old plant, according to the Nova Scotia provincial government.
Michelin will spend $64.1 million on the project, and the Nova Scotia province as much as $8.9 million, according to a news release from the provincial government.
Michelin didn't disclose the size of the capacity expansion, which will involve equipment improvements, including the installation of new technologies in all aspects of the manufacturing process. The company will add 32,280 square feet of floor space to the facility.
Dana LeBlanc, president, Michelin North America (Canada) Inc., cited growing demand for Michelin X One wide-based truck tires for the investment.
"Today's announcement shows once again that Michelin believes in both the province of Nova Scotia and our highly skilled employees," LeBlanc said.
Nova Scotia Premier Darrell Dexter said the investment shows that Nova Scotians, and particularly the workers and industries in rural Nova Scotia, can be among the world's best in quality and productivity.
The government said a report from Dalhousie University found it gains about $70 million annually in tax revenue from Nova Scotians employed by Michelin in the province.
The Waterville plant makes radial off-the-road tires besides radial truck tires. The plant is rated at 137,400 metric tons annual capacity and has 1,219 hourly employees.