Apollo Tyres eyes growth at $1bn

New Delhi, Sep 12: Riding high on its recent acquisition of South Africa-based Dunlop Tyres International, Apollo Tyres Ltd eyes a growth of one billion dollar by the end of next fiscal, company official sources said today.

The company had recently acquired two plants in South Africa, one at Durban and the other at Ladysmith for carrying on its manufacturing and had set up a factory at Zimbabwe for retreading purpose with an investment of around Rs 300 crore.

''The overall sales of the company stands at 200 million dollar and is expected to cross 250 million dollar by the end of the next fiscal,'' sources said.

The company is planning to expand its operations to Europe and South-East Asia in an attempt to gain a strong foothold in the lucrative exports market.

In addition, Apollo also recently announced plans to invest Rs 520 crore over the next five years by signing a Memorandum of Understanding with the Tamil Nadu Government to manufacture radial tyres for passenger car, truck and bus, and farm equipment.

UNI