The E40m facility will make automotive interior and climate control systems

Automotive moulder Visteon is to invest E40m in a new production facility in Nitra, Slovakia, to support new business with Kia and PSA Peugeot Citroлn. The plant is scheduled to begin manufacturing automotive interior and climate control systems in spring 2006. It expected to employ around 400 staff.

Karl Krause, Visteon’s vice president of manufacturing, Europe and South America, said: “Recent new business wins gave us the opportunity to review our European manufacturing base and evaluate how to best serve future business with car makers located in Central Eastern Europe.” In June 2004, Visteon entered into a memorandum of understanding with the Slovak Ministry of Economy regarding grants for the future investment in Nitra.

Visteon currently has plants in the Czech Republic (Novy Jicin, Rychvald and Hluk), Poland (Praszka and Poznan) and Hungary (Szekesfehervar) for the manufacture and assembly of products including automotive lighting, climate control, powertrain, chassis, and electronics components and systems.