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The company's board has approved the setting up of the facility that will have a total capacity of 5.5 million passenger car and light truck (PCLT) tyres and 675,000 heavy commercial vehicle (HCV) tyres per annum. The investment will be made over the next five years.
The facility, which will come up at the new industrial zone near Gyongyoshalasz, will produce both Apollo and Vredestein branded tyres, and will cater to the entire European market. Apollo Tyres already has an existing facility in the Netherlands.
Neeraj Kanwar, vice-chairman and managing director, Apollo Tyres, said: "This investment would be our first one into a greenfield facility outside of India and would be a significant milestone in the company's international growth journey. Our aim is to create a benchmark manufacturing facility, which would further increase our competitive strength in the European market."
The construction of the plant is expected to start in the spring of 2015 and the first tyre is likely to roll out in early 2017, the company said.
"Apart from providing direct job to 975 people, of which majority would be hired locally, this facility will also lead to creation of indirect jobs and contribute significantly to the development of the region," added Kanwar.
At present, Apollo Tyres has four manufacturing units in India, three in southern Africa and one in the Netherlands. The combined production capacity of all facilities put together is 1,700 tonnes per day.
The company decided to invest in the new facility in Eastern Europe after its $ 2.5 billion acquisition of US-based Cooper Tire fell through last year.
