“Our company focuses on foreign markets, and the products go to the vast majority of carmakers throughout the world,” said Christian von Albrichsfeld, general manager of Continental Automotive Romania.
Continental Automotive Romania had almost 3,500 employees on average in 2011.
The new car part plant in Ghimbav (near Brasov, central Romania) and the expansion of the engineering center in Timisoara (west of the country) will require Continental to create new jobs to consolidate its position as one of the leaders in the local automotive industry besides Dacia and Ford.
“We hired about 1,000 new co-workers last year and will do the same this year,” Christian von Albrichsfeld said.
The automotive component manufacturer will start production of feed pumps and subassemblies in the new plant in the industrial park in Ghimbav.
Total investment in the plant is EUR40 million and about 550 new jobs are to be created. Production should have started in April but was delayed for the fall, company officials said.
The German group is also conducting a EUR71 million investment in its tire plant in Timisoara, which could generate about 400 jobs within two years.
Continental has eight production facilities and three research and development centers in Romania in Timisoara, Sibiu, Carei, Nadab, Brasov and Iasi. It is also a partner in a joint venture in Slatina (southern Romania) and in a tire distribution center for Eastern Europe in Sacalaz (near Timisoara).
The group has invested EUR575 million on the Romanian market in the last twelve years and had about 11,000 employees last year. Its Continental Automotive Romania registered revenues of over 1.1 billion lei (EUR253 million) in 2011, while Continental Automotive Products’ revenues stood at RON2.2 billion, according to the Finance Ministry. (EUR1=RON4.332)
(English version by Loredana Fratila-Cristescu)