MRF’s Gujarat factory to come up in a year

Leading tyre maker MRF has said that it is proposing to set up its Gujarat factory in Bharuch in a year’s time.

“Our new plant is coming up in Baruch area. We are in the process of buying the lands. It will be a huge project as we will be investing about ₹4,500 crore. It will be one of biggest factories in India. We plan to establish the factory in a year’s time after securing the lands,” KM Mammen, Chairman & Managing Director, MRF, told BusinessLine on the sidelines of India Rubber Expo 2017.

The new factory will cater to both domestic and export markets. “Every factory of ours will focus on both domestic and export demand,” he added.

Asked about the rationale behind making a large investment outside South for the first time, he replied that it was unfortunate that the company did not consider it in the past.

“Gujarat is a very dynamic State and everything moves so quickly, I am happy there are such States having proactive approach to help entrepreneurs,” he added.

“Gujarat is emerging as a key investment destination for the major auto players. The State hopes to surpass the production capacity of top car manufacturing States like Haryana, Maharashtra and Tamil Nadu, with an installed capacity to roll out 10 lakh units annually within the next three to four years,” according to a document of the Gujarat government. As many as 350 ancillary units are expected to come up over the next three years. The new factory can also support growth in northern and western markets.

Apart from MRF, Taiwanese tyre company Maxxis Group is in the process of setting up its manufacturing plant in Motown Sanand with an investment of ₹2,500 crore. It is also home to Ceat, Apollo Tyres, which have been running their plants in Halol and Vadodara, respectively.

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