Ceat restarts tyre unit in Mumbai

Plant operations were suspended for a day and a half after fire gutted raw material store

Ceat Tyres, the fourth largest tyre manufacturer in India by tonnage, today restarted production at their Bhandup plant after it was shut down following a fire reported on Sunday.

Plant operations were suspended for a day and a half, according to senior company executives, after fire gutted the raw material store.

The Bhandup facility manufactures farm, truck and off the road tyres and contributes about 30 per cent to Ceat's total capacity. The company said it is yet to ascertain the exact cause of fire or the damage caused.

Anant Goenka, managing director, Ceat Tyres said, "We have resumed production at our Bhandup plant. Meanwhile we are trying to find out the cause of the fire and will take corrective action so that such an incident does not reoccur."

Ceat also informed that there was no loss of life due to the accident. One person received superficial burns and was taken to the hospital.

The Bhandup plant has a capacity to produce 250 tonnes per day and was operating at 85-90 per cent levels at the time of fire. The plant is one of the two plants of Ceat which makes cross-ply tyres, the other being based in Nashik.

Its newest plant in Halol Gujarat makes radial tyres. The Bhandup unit, located in a suburb of Mumbai, is the oldest manufacturing unit of Ceat.