By expanding its seatbelt manufacturing plant, Swedish automotive company Autoliv will create 700 new jobs in Sopronkövesd. By means of this development that was announced at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade on Monday in Budapest, the seatbelt manufacturing plant of Sopronkövesd will be the largest in Europe.
A new unit of 15,000 square metres is planned to be constructed by 2018 in addition to the current production hall of 19,000 square metres. The Hungarian government contributes to the investment worth HUF 11 billion with financial support of HUF 1.5 billion based on government decision. The volume of production may double as a result of the investment; annually, even 40 million seatbelts may be produced.
Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó emphasised that Autoliv, the world’s 25th largest first-round automotive supplier, apart from making a commitment to implementing significant developments, it will increase the ratio of Hungarian suppliers from 5 percent to 20 percent in terms of raw materials, and from 30 percent to 50 percent regarding machines.
He noted that Autoliv’s investment brings us closer to reaching the three priorities of foreign trade according to which the ratio of industry and export to the gross domestic product (GDP) shall be the highest in Hungary among the EU member states, and the ratio of per capita direct working capital shall be the highest in Hungary within Central Europe. Peter Szijjártó stated that Hungary is already one of the strongholds of the automotive industry in Europe today. This industry is one of the main drivers of the Hungarian economy, that is, one of the fastest growing national economies in the European Union, he added.
Frank Kohrs, Autoliv’s Vice President responsible for European seatbelt production thanked the local government of Sopronkövesd and the Hungarian government for supporting the expansion of the factory.
The Swedish company has been present in Hungary since 1993; currently they provide jobs for 1760 people. The manufacturing plant of Sopronkövesd is a supplier of Audi, BMW, Daimler, Volvo or Volkswagen among others.