Chinese tire giant to invest $550M in new Egypt manufacturing plant

China National Tire & Rubber plans to establish a new tire manufacturing plant in Egypt with total investments of $550 million through Prometeon Tyre Egypt, as part of its expansion strategy in the local market.

The project will focus on producing tires for heavy transport vehicles, engineering equipment, and agricultural tractors.

According to a statement by Egypt’s Ministry of Industry, the company plans to build the new facility in Amreya, Alexandria, on land adjacent to its existing factory. The expansion will also include upgrading current production lines and improving their efficiency.

The new plant is expected to add an annual production capacity of 1.5 million tires and is scheduled to begin operations in early 2028. The project is also expected to support technology transfer and increase Egypt’s exports of tire products.

Minister of Industry Khaled Hashem held an expanded meeting with representatives of China National Tire & Rubber to discuss the company’s expansion plans in Egypt.

During the meeting, both sides reviewed the company’s requests for support from the ministry, including procedures to obtain the required industrial land, issue industrial licenses, and secure the necessary number of foreign experts to transfer technical knowledge and expertise.

The company also called for stricter measures against non-compliant and dumped imports, as well as stronger anti-subsidy and anti-dumping actions.

Hashem said the Ministry of Industry fully supports the company’s expansion plans in Egypt and will work to remove any challenges it may face, whether within the ministry or with other relevant authorities. He also stressed the ministry’s commitment to facilitating industrial licensing procedures.

The minister urged the company to expand into the production of passenger car tires, describing the segment as a key feeder industry for the automotive sector, which is receiving strong government attention under Egypt’s national automotive industry development program.

He said local tire production would help reduce Egypt’s import bill for automotive components and deepen local manufacturing.

The meeting also reviewed the company’s efforts to rationalize energy and water consumption, as well as treat and reuse water in manufacturing operations.

Hashem stressed the importance of relying on solar energy to operate the factory and increasing the share of local components in the company’s products.

He also noted that Egypt is currently activating the local product preference law in government procurement to boost demand for locally manufactured products.

For his part, Wang Jianjun, Chairman of China National Tire & Rubber, said the new investments are part of the company’s long-term plan in Egypt, which began with its existing factory in Alexandria.

He added that the company will focus in the coming years on diversifying its product portfolio to include passenger car tires, in order to meet strong local demand and expand exports to international markets.