(L-R)Harinder Singh, Managing Director and CEO Yokohama India, Nitin Mantri, Chairman, Yokohama India, Anil Gupta, Vice Chairman, Yokohama India
Yokohama India, a wholly owned subsidiary of Japan-based tyre giant Yokohama Rubber Co is actively looking to expand its presence in the Original Equipment Manufacturing (OEM) tyre supply segment.OEM supply involves tyre makers supplying directly to auto companies for newly manufactured cars.Yokohama’s India business has predominantly been in the after market segment where vehicle owners replace tyres in their cars. The company holds a market share of about 10 per cent in this segment.Speaking to businessline, Anil Gupta, Vice Chairman, Yokohama India said that being a relatively new entrant in the country, the company’s business share from OEM is still fairly low, without giving exact figures. Industry estimates peg Yokohama’s OEM business at roughly 5-10 per cent.He added that growing this segment is a key priority and that the firm is having multiple discussions with major OEMs for the same.“It takes time to grow the OEM businesses. When you discuss with partners you are not planning for their current lineup of cars but for models that will be launched 3-4 years later. We are in discussions now and hopefully some will materialise soon,”Gupta was speaking to businessline, on the sidelines of Yokohama’s new Geolander X-CV tyre launch in Vishakapatnam on Wednesday. Yokohama India is expecting to grow at 18 per cent in 2026, after posting similar growth in 2025. Gupta said that the growth rate is the highest in the Indian organised tyre market.Premiumisation driving growth At a press conference, Nitin Mantri, Chairman, Yokohama India said that the rapid adoption of SUVs, which now account for nearly 60 per cent of the cars sold in India, has been a significant tailwind for the tyre maker that specialises in premium tyres for this segment. On the production side, Yokohama has an annual capacity of 4.5 million tyres which it manufactures out of its two facilities in Haryana(2.8 million) and Vishakhapatnam(1.7 million). The Visakhapatnam plant’s capacity can be expanded by a further 1.8 million tyres. Beyond passenger cars, the group also operates a separate Off highway tyre(OHT) business, with separate manufacturing facilities in Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Visakhapatnam and an under construction unit in Odhisa. Overall, the company has invested around $700 million- $800 million across all of these units.India is Yokohama’s fourth largest market globally after the United States, Japan and China. The writer was in Visakhapatnam at the invitation of Yokohama IndiaPublished on August 12, 2026
