Michelin announced on May 18th the creation of a joint-venture with Barito Pacific Group (BPG) in Indonesia to produce natural rubber.
An eco-responsible partnership
Together, both companies will ensure the reforestation of three areas in Indonesia, on the islands of Sumatra and Borneo, with a total surface of 88,000 hectares. On about half of them, rubber trees will be planted. Local plant species will be also reintroduced on other parcels in order to recreate a natural environment.
The joint venture will be owned “by BPG for 53% and Michelin for 47%,” declared the French company, which has invested $55 million in the project. In the long term, this will create “16,000 direct or indirect jobs,” says Michelin.
Michelin, a WWF partner
The tire manufacturer is also associated with the non-governmental organization WWF as part of the promotion of sustainable practices in rubber production.
Their four-year partnership is about “the promotion of best practices in plantation of rubber trees, methods of extraction and processing of rubber, in representative international bodies of the sector,” says Michelin.
The manufacturer has also committed, in coordination with WWF, to protect natural parks called Tiga Pulluh and Limau and to restore wildlife in the concession areas in Indonesia.