New opportunity for potential suppliers at Serbia-North Rhine-Westphalia business forum on May 15 at Dusseldorf – Two big German investments in Pancevo and Cacak soon

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic will take part in the Serbia-North Rhine-Westphalia business forum on Tuesday, May 15, where he will talk to German investors and present opportunities for investments in Serbia.

Representatives of 100 German businessmen from around 50 companies from the automotive, chemical, mechanical, TC and other industries will take part in the forum in Dusseldorf in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia, which has 18 million residents.

As the president of the Chamber of Commerce of Serbia (CCIS), Marko Cadez, estimates, the participation of Serbia in this event is an opportunity for the country to present its business opportunities to German companies, both in the sphere of investments and in finding new partners and suppliers from Serbia.

– This is the most populous state in Germany and one of the strongest economically – Cadez points out and reminds that North Rhine-Westphalia is the fifth state in a row in which German-Serbian business forums are organized.

He reminded that such events had been organized in Bavaria, Hesse, Hamburg and Baden-Wurttemberg.

Two companies from Serbia which operate in Germany and have their companies there will also take part in the forum this Tuesday. These are Roaming Networks and Via Ocel, companies from the fields of information-communications technologies and thermal energy.

– It's interesting that it is in this state that we've had the most contracts for supplier companies from the mechanical and electronic industry, and the reason is that companies from Smederevo and Zrenjanin took part in the Suppliers' Days in Belgrade last year, following which they became partners to German companies – Cadez says.

As Gunther Krichbaum, Bundestag member and the chairman of the Committee on the Affairs of the European Union, announced, Serbia is looking at another two big investments from Germany.

One of these pertains to the company CTF, which is arriving to Pancevo with an investment in the production of electric car components worth EUR 160 million and which will employ over a thousand people. The second investment comes from Vorwerk, which produces spare parts for the automotive industry and which has decided to build a facility in Cacak, where it will employ a thousand workers.

Data show that Germany is one of the biggest investors in Serbia and that it has invested over EUR 1.9 billion in the country so far. German companies employ more than 44,000 people in Serbia, and companies from North Rhine-Westphalia have more than seven thousand employees in our country.

The president of the CCIS says that numerous German companies are interested in investing in Serbia.

– There are several companies planning to arrive to Serbia soon and these are big, high-tech production facilities, investments which are big not just in the greenfield sense, but also by being investments in knowledge and education – Cadez explains.

As he estimates, these investments would not take place if Germany and its businessmen didn't trust the Serbian marker, which, as he says, is also confirmed by a survey of the German Chamber of Commerce in Serbia.

This survey shows that 90% of German enterprises in Serbia would re-invest and come to Serbia.

The total trade between Serbia and this German state amounted to EUR 619.9 million, an increase by 30% compared to 2016.

Privredna komora Srbije

AHK Srbija

Serbia Germany business forum Dusseldorf

Aleksandar Vucic

North Rhine Westphalia

Roaming Networks

Via Ocel

Gunther Krichbaum

CTF

Vorwerk

Marko Cadez

CCIS

German investments in Serbia

AHK

Bavaria

Hesse

Hamburg

Baden Wurttemberg

CTF Pancevo