BRUSSELS—Bridgestone Europe Middle East India & Africa (EMIA) plans to increase original tire fitments for electric vehicles to 20 percent of its lineup for passenger cars by 2024.
In a Sept. 16 statement marking the European mobility week, the company said it had tripled its OE offerings from 4 percent in 2019 to 11 percent of its portfolio in 2021.
According to Bridgestone, 50 percent of "the top 10 EV manufacturers" globally selected Bridgestone fitments for their vehicles in 2021.
Furthermore, the tire maker said 50 percent of "the top 10 most sold EVs" in Europe are fitted with Bridgestone tires as OE.
To advance EV offerings, Bridgestone EMIA said it currently commits more than 30 percent of its tire development resources to the market as EVs are expected to comprise 25 percent of the EU's total new car sales by 2025.
The tire maker said it will aim to further incorporate its sustainable technologies in EV tires. These include the company's ologic tire technology to enhance battery range and the recently introduced TECHSYN which improves wear efficiency, reduces rolling resistance and lowers raw material consumption in the long term.
The tires also incorporate B-Silent noise-reduction technology and the lightweight Enliten Technology to reduce rolling resistance by up to 30 percent, and weight by up to 20 percent.
In 2021, 6 percent of Bridgestone EMIA OE fitments applied Enliten Technology and the company aims to increase the figure to 10 percent next year.
Bridgestone, in partnership with car manufacturers, also is developing high load tires to carry the higher weight of powerful electric and hybrid vehicles.
The tire maker expects to introduces its EV marking on tailor-made tires to indicate the tires have undergone "a rigorous testing process, received approval from car manufacturers and support the unique features and demands of EVs."
"To help shape a sustainable future of mobility, Bridgestone EMIA is transforming to support the adoption of EVs," said Emilio Tiberio, COO & CTO of Bridgestone EMIA.
This, he said, is seeing Bridgestone pioneer "premium tires and tire technologies" for EVs.