Metro Tyres to treble bike tyre production capacity

City-based Metro Tyres today said it is raising production capacity of motorcycle tyres to 1.5 lakh units per month as it looks to increase footprints in the bike market.

The company is investing Rs 50 crore at its Ludhiana plant to increase the bike tyres production capacity from the current 50,000 units per month, which will be completed by April this year.

"We have committed an investment of Rs 50 crore for increasing capacity at our motorcycle tyre plant to 1.5 lakh a month, from the existing 50,000 units. The plant at Ludhiana will achieve the new capacity next month," Metro Tyres Managing Director Rummy Chhabra told PTI.

He said the investment is being made from the company's internal accrual.

The company manufactures bike tyres under a technical collaboration with Germany-based Continental AG and sells it under joint branding.

"The market for bike tyres is growing at a phenomenal double digit rate and we want to capitalise on it. The target will be mainly the domestic after-market," Chhabra said.

Metro Tyres operates six plants located in Delhi NCR and Ludhiana with an overall daily capacity of one lakh units of two-wheeler and three-wheeler tyres.

The Rs 500-crore company is also planning to undertake an expansion of its dealership network.

"We will add another 1,000 dealers by end of March 2011, to our existing strength of 3,000. This is intended to further augment our network nationwide," Chhabra said.