The New Small Family vehicle project was launched at Volkswagen's Bratislava facility on November 23 with the laying of a foundation stone in a ceremony attended by PM Robert Fico, the TASR newswire reported.
New innovative small vehicles will be produced under the project. Production of the new Volkswagen model UP!, which is part of the New Small Family group, and the decision to locate production at the Bratislava facility was announced by the company's management in April this year. The estimated sum of the investment is €308 million.
The production capacity of the Bratislava facility should increase to 400,000 vehicles a year after the New Small Family line is launched. According to chairman of the company board Andreas Tostmann, the production of the new model will create 1,500 new jobs, while the construction of new facilities - painting and assembly halls - will also provide work to approximately 1,800 people from many professions.
In all, the new line of vehicles will mean work for 7,000 people not only directly in production but also among suppliers, with Slovakia enjoying a 50-percent share of this number of jobs. Volkswagen's activities will significantly contribute to renewed economic growth in 2010 and 2011, Fico told the TASR. TASR
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
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