Bridgestone to close tire plant in China

TOKYO—Bridgestone Corp. plans to close a truck and bus tire factory in Huizhou, China, by year-end as part of an ongoing restructuring program.

The factory, one of two truck tire plants it operates in China, was opened in 2007 in Huizhou, a city of 2 million residents in Guangdong Province. It has a nameplate capacity of 4,400 units of tire per day with 800 employees.

Bridgestone said it will consolidate production of truck/bus tires in China at its remaining factory there, in Shenyang, in northeastern China. Daily capacity at that plant, which opened in 1999, is listed as 2,800 tires, with 518 employees.

"Bridgestone has been considering manufacturing footprint restructuring globally, including tire, diversified product and material manufacturing sites," the company said.

The decision to close the plant, it added, came after a "thorough and comprehensive" study of options. The company did not disclose its expected impact of the closing on its fiscal earnings.

Bridgestone said it is taking "appropriate actions" to minimize the impact as much as possible, following local laws and regulations, as well as labor agreements

The Tokyo-based tire maker said the move is in line with its current mid-term business plan (2021-23), which aims to rebuild earning power of the group. The firm is looking to cut fixed costs by approximately $480 million by year-end 2023, it disclosed in July.

Bridgestone has two other tire plants in China—in Tianjin and Wuxi, Jiangsu—dedicated to passenger and light truck tires.

This is Bridgestone's second divestment this year of assets in Huizhou. It also sold its ownership stake in Bridgestone (Huizhou) Synthetic Rubber Co. Ltd. (BSRC) to LCY Chemical Corp., a Taiwan-based company active in polymers, solvents and other industrial chemicals. Bridgestone said it expects to "make new synergy" with LCY.