Kia Motors Slovakia began the engine shop construction in April 2010. The construction work is in progress and will run until March 2011. In 2011, the installation of production technologies will be completed and trial operation will start. The volume production is scheduled for the end of 2011. Full production capacity of 150,000 engines per year is planned to be achieved in 2012. On this occasion, Robert Fico, Prime Minister of the Slovak Republic, visited the plant and In-Kyu Bae, President and CEO of Kia Motors Slovakia, informed him on current status of the engine shop construction. Also, representatives of the Ministry of Economy of the Slovak Republic, the Zilina self-governing region, mayors of surrounding villages and other authorities participated.
"I think that our common goal should be greater use of the knowledge potential of our people in research, development of new materials, electronic systems, software engineering, digital technologies, artificial intelligence not only in a product but also in its design and optimization of manufacturing processes," said Robert Fico, the Prime Minister of the Slovak Republic. The Government of the Slovak Republic is prepared to provide strong support in the field of research and development. Engineers, technologists, information engineers, but also researchers in Slovakia, in the past not only at home but also abroad, now prove their quality. "The construction work is progressing and will continue until the beginning of next year. I am extremely pleased that we continue to increase the engine production capacity at our plant. I believe we can successfully launch the volume production and thereby increase the export of the Slovak Republic. By its construction Kia Motors Slovakia confirms its long-term commitment to Slovakia," says In-Kyu Bae, President and CEO of Kia Motors Slovakia.
Kia Motors has completed the initial landscaping such as land leveling and other works. Also it completed groundbreaking of the shop successfully and at the end of April 2010, the first column erection was held. The main contractor is the company amco, Asset Management Corporation. Several Slovak local suppliers will be involved in the implementation of the construction with a total of 250 employees. Production capacity will increase by 150,000 engines, which will reach the total production of 450,000 units produced annually. The beginning of volume production is scheduled for the end of 2011. In the shop with the size of 28,050 m2, Kia Motors Slovakia plans to produce gasoline engines 1.4 L and 1.6 L. The produced engines will be exported to the company Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Czech in Nosovice, the Czech Republic. The total amount of investment including manufacturing technologies will reach over EUR 100 million and will create more than 270 direct job positions.
