New battery production plant to be constructed in Miskolc

Japanese battery manufacturing specialist GS Yuasa is constructing its first factory in Europe in Miskolc’s southern industrial park; the foundation stone of the new facility, which will be completed by 2019, was laid on Wednesday.

At the ceremony, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó told reporters: “The Government is assisting the 8.8 billion forint (EUR 28 million) project with non-returnable funding of 465 million forints; the new plant will employ over fifty people”.

“The 170 Japanese companies operating in Hungary employ some 25 thousand people, and Japan is the third largest investor in Hungary from outside Europe”, he added.

The Minister spoke about the fact that this latest investment is also proof that the world’s automotive industry is undergoing a revolutionary transformation, in view of the fact that electromobility, self-driven cars and environmentally friendly technologies are no longer the future, but the present. “The automotive industry revolution is happening before our very eyes; many important and significant investments have arrived in Hungary and will continue to do so”, he said.

“Nobody disputes the fact that during the traditional era of the automotive industry Hungary grew to become one of the bastions of European car manufacturing; last year the performance of the automotive industry broke all previous national economic records exceeding 8 trillion forints (EUR 25.6 bn), with 175 thousand people employed within the sector, the competitiveness of which is indicated by the fact that 92 percent of automotive industry products are exported”, he explained.

Mr. Szijjártó told the press that the Czech Republic and Germany had also been in competition for the Japanese company’s investment.

“The batteries produced here, which apply innovative technologies, will ensure that we are also a determining part of the new automotive industry era; most of the products manufactured in Miskolc will be sold abroad to Europe’s largest and strongest car manufacturers”, he stated.