Rancho Cucamonga, California – Kumho Tires has announced the official opening of its new tire plant in Nanjing, China. The company has invested a total of US$100 million in the plant, which spans approximately 90,000 square feet.

“Kumho Tires is already the number-one passenger car tire maker in China, and this state-of-the-art plant gives us an important foothold in its fast-growing truck and bus tire market,” said Sae-chul Oh, president and CEO of Kumho Tires. “China has enormous growth potential and is a key part of our strategy to become one of the top five global tire makers.”

China’s truck and bus market is expected to grow between 25 and 30 per cent each year; the plant, designed to produce truck and bus tires, will have an annual capacity of more than 300,000 tires. The plant is an important component in the company’s strategy to build a global manufacturing network where tires are produced in the same regions in which they are sold, and it is Kumho’s fourth tire plant in China.