Sailun may become a partner of "Belshina"

Belshina has real prospects for cooperation with the Chinese company Sailun, the tire branch of the industrial group Mesnac, said Alexander Kovaliov, the general director of the Belarusian enterprise, in an interview with Vestnik Belneftekhim.

Earlier, in 2024, Mesnac, the leading manufacturer of equipment for the tire industry, and the Belarusian State Technological University (BSTU) signed a memorandum of cooperation with the company, which provides for interaction in various areas, such as scientific research and improvement of elastomeric compounds for tires and RTI.

"The owner of Mesnac and Sailun is one - a respected person, a professor, a graduate of the Qingdao University of Science and Technology, who once studied abroad, accumulated all the knowledge and experience he received and created a powerful company that, despite its global recognition [Sailun is among the top 10 largest tire manufacturers in the world], continues to evolve," - noted the head of Belshina.

According to him, Sailun's products, including ultra-large tires, "are of the highest quality, close to the analogs of such top brands as Bridgestone, Michelin, Goodyear. And we, of course, would like to learn some nuances of technology, cooperate with Chinese science. From domestic science, we have already received almost everything that is possible",

At the same time, Kovaliov added that "I had hoped that after that trip to China and the signing of the memorandum, some progress would begin. However, today I cannot say that the parties are already actively interacting and know what final result, including a useful one for Belshina, they want to achieve. It has become clear that in matters of cooperation with Chinese companies, it is necessary to move on your own",

Answering the question of how willing the Chinese side is to share technologies, the general director of Belshina replied: "I don't know of any manufacturer of high-margin and even unique products that would willingly share their proprietary technologies, let's say, with potential competitors. Even if we consider the process from a commercial point of view, how can we evaluate technology? How can we calculate how much labor has been invested in its development and how many minds have worked on it? The technology of creating, say, large tires is a secret behind seven seals, and each manufacturer has its own, just like Belshina. Despite the fact that, it seems, everything about tires has long been known to everyone, different brands produce products with different characteristics and quality",

Kovaliov also notes that Chinese companies "achieve better results faster due to their mobility, they have many more resources, they are practically not limited in raw materials, and the chemical industry is very developed in the country. Take natural rubber, for example. It's one thing to bring it from Vietnam or Thailand to Belarus, and another thing to bring it to China. The price difference is significant. Moreover, Sailun, without hesitation, simply builds factories in Vietnam to avoid logistics and transportation costs",

Kovaliov also said that the Chinese New Year, celebrated according to the lunar calendar, did not become a holiday for him. "No, I don't understand this. Moreover, the non-coinciding with our holidays Chinese New Year is a problem. Because China is a strategic direction for Belshina, and when everyone there goes on long weekends with their dragons for almost two or three weeks, our cooperation is also forced to pause", - he noted.

Regarding the question of whether Chinese tires have an advantage over Belarusian ones on the Russian market, Kovaliov stated that it is the price and the lack of advertising for Belshina, which is practically non-existent in the RF, although deliveries of products have been made for many years.

"The best year for the company to work in the Russian market was 2022," he said. "When global tire manufacturers massively curtailed their activities and sales, Belshina's products were in demand like never before. We see this perfectly and understand the reasons, and now we are working to eliminate the shortcomings. This primarily concerns the range - changes in the product portfolio. Today, the bulk of Belarusian tires sold in Russia are passenger tires with a diameter of 13-14 inches. They are quite cheap and mostly go to the Caucasus region. But if we supply about 1.3 million of them to Russia per year, then China supplies 400 thousand. It is not profitable for them, they prefer to supply the Russian market with high-radius tires - 15, 16, 17, 18 inches. They are more profitable. So they are also profitable for us, and we can sell such tires in Russia. Therefore, I believe that Belshina needs to build its own sales network and form a policy of active sales",