“Our new unit at Jhagadia will begin in two years,” said Lanxess India Pvt Ltd (LIPL) managing director Joerg Strassburger. The company is relocating its rubber chemicals facility from Thane in Maharashtra to Jhagadia.

He also said the company is open to acquisitions in India and abroad in order to spur its growth. “We are looking at both organic and inorganic growth globally, so we would not exclude India. The company will continue its growth strategy and will invest in new projects wherever there are promising business opportunities,” said Strassburger.

Lanxess feels the increasing demand of radial ply tyres is likely to change the face of the Indian tyre industry. “India and China are expected to emerge as the two biggest markets of halobutyl rubber used for manufacturing tubeless radial tyres for their growing automobile industry,” Lanxess India vice president A Malhan said.

Continuous tyre technology change from tyres which use inner tubes made from regular butyl rubber to radial tyres using halobutyl rubber will drive increased demand for this rubber in both India and China, he added.

He said that presently the Indian automobile industry uses 90 per cent radial tyres, of which 20 per cent are tubeless. The demand for tubeless tyres is expected to increase rapidly once market leader Maruti adopts the new tyre technology, he said.

The use of halogenated products, particularly bromobutyl rubber tyres, are used in the innermost, air-and humidity-impermeable layer of a tubeless tyre. They keep the tyre pressure constant over a long period. This makes vehicles safer and ensures they consume less fuel and produce fewer harmful emissions.

“These tubeless tyres are good for the rough roads in India. It gives higher mileage, better rolling resistance, and are fuel efficient and energy-saving,” said Malhan.

Lanxess is a leading speciality chemical company, with sales of 6.94-billion euros in 2006 and employs approximately 14,500 staff in 21 countries across the world.