SLOVAKIA could become the location for the branch of yet another carmaker: German car manufacturer BMW is considering opening a new factory here.
“We will definitely need more production capacities,” BMW board member Ian Robertson told the Hospodárske Noviny daily, “and we plan to build one of the factories in eastern Europe.”
He admitted that Slovakia was one of the potential locations. Last year, the car producer denied reports about the possibility of opening a factory in Slovakia, but the idea has since become viable, according to Robertson. The Slovak Economy Ministry’s spokesman Stanislav Jurikovič confirmed for the daily that his office is aware of BMW’s interest in Slovakia.
BMW had a record year in 2012 in terms of both sales and profits, Hospodárske Noviny wrote in its March 20 issue. By 2020, it plans to become a market leader in luxury cars, but it does not have sufficient production capacity. Slovakia is vying for the new factory along with Hungary, the Czech Republic, Slovenia and Croatia. If Slovakia wins, the factory will probably be built in the east of the country.
