From Batočina for BMW - Grah Automotive starts construction of new units for production of cable goods on June 1

(Miloš Petrović)

Grah Automotive, Slovenian manufacturer of electronic sets and plastic parts for automobiles, will start construction of a factory in Batočina on June 1st, in which EUR 12m will be invested. New production facilities at 5,000 square meters will be situated on the existing factory grounds, and they should be put in operation by the end of 2010. Grah Automotive's biggest clients are world's leading automobile manufacturers: Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Opel, Kia, Volkswagen, Renault, while Slovenian manufacturer also expects to start cooperating with Fiat.

Out of total of EUR 12m, EUR 7m should be invested in equipment, while the rest of the money should be spent on construction of the facility. In addition to cable goods, new facilities will also be producing electronic parts for automotive industry. In that way, significant production capacities will be moved from Slovenia to Serbia - Miloš Petrović from Grah Automotive's Strategic Procurements Sector told eKapija.

- The goods made in the factory in Batočina will be delivered to our regular clients - Hungarian Viso Corp and our mother company SGA, which will then distribute these components among our end-buyers, that is, the leading companies in the automotive industry. Cable sets will be produced for the initial installation, which means that they will not be produced as spare parts.

As it was announced earlier by people from the company, it is expected that the new production will result in larger export to the western market of Europe, which should amount to EUR 40m in 2013. Last year, Grah Automotive exported EUR 6.5m worth of products and became one of six top exporters in the region of Šumadija and Pomoravlje.

Grah Automotive opened its first production unit at 2,500 square meters in Batočina on October 5, 2006. The Slovenian company currently has 200 employees in Šumadija, while another 400 people should get jobs once the new units are put in operation. By the decision of Batočina's administration, Grah Automative does not have to pay any municipal tax or any other fee during the period of three years.

SGA is a group comprising several companies, and it even has some production units in China and Dubai. The mother company employs 500 people in Slovenia, while daughter companies have between 20 and 50 employees. In addition to the production of automotive supplies, the company in Slovenia also produces street lighting systems.

Grah Automotive participated in the First International Southeast Europe Automotive Suppliers Trade Fair SEE Auto CompoNet 2010, which took place between May 19 and 21 in Kragujevac.