Fiat's new model presented in Torino - Income from export of automobiles from Kragujevac to reach 500 million euros in 2012

(Mladjan Dinkic)

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy and Regional Development Mladjan Dinkic visited today Fiat’s design centre in Torino, where he was presented a new model of the car that will be manufactured in Kragujevac, in two versions – with five and seven seats.

Dinkic said for the occasion that that was the first time that he had seen a new model of Fiat’s car that would be manufactured in Serbia for the whole world, noting that that car had the typical Italian modern design.

As the Ministry of Economy announced, this is the first delegation from Serbia that has had a chance to see Fiat's new model whose trial production will commence in one year.

Dinkic said he had promised Fiat Vice President Alfred Altavilla that he would be the first buyer of the new model made in Kragujevac and that he was sure that the citizens of Kragujevac would be proud of the fact that "such beautiful automobile" was being manufactured in their city.

He said that Fiat’s leadership confirmed that Fiat automobili Srbija would employ 1,433 workers more, apart from the existing 1,000, so there would be a total of 2,433 workers at the beginning of assembly-line production.

The Deputy Prime Minister added that the Italians had already started signing agreements with the suppliers of equipment that would be installed in Kragujevac-based factory's production halls over the next year.

- Also, the works on complete reconstruction and modernization of the factory are in progress, and special part of our talks today was dedicated to the organization of the industrial park for Fiat's suppliers in Korman field. It was specified that a part of the production in Korman field would also be organized by Magneti Marelli, as the key supplier of Fiat, along with another five companies that would be situated there in the first phase - said Dinkic.

He expressed an expectation that all the preparations would be finished prior to December 1st and that they would be followed by the works on the construction of necessary infrastructure and new units in the industrial park in Korman field.

In the industrial park in Korman field, about 700 people will be employed by the primary suppliers of automotive components for the new model, while few thousand people more will get jobs with other manufacturers of components all around Serbia.

It was also said that about 80% of the value of Fiat's new automobile would be produced in the factories on the territory of Serbia. Total investment of Fiat in Serbia will amount to nearly 1 billion euros and it will be about 100 million euros higher than initially planned because the new model from Kragujevac will be more modern, bigger and significantly more valuable.

The trial production of the new model will start in one year, while the mass, assembly-line production commences in spring 2012.

According to the adopted business plan, Fiat counts on an income from the export of automobiles from Kragujevac in amount of about 500 million euros already in the first year of the assembly-line production (2012), while it should grow to 1.3 billion euros in 2013, which is one fifth of Serbia's total export in 2009.

FCA Srbija Kragujevac

FIAT Torino Italia

Vlada Republike Srbije

Ministarstvo privrede Republike Srbije

Magneti Marelli Corbetta Italia

Mladjan Dinkic

Fiat automobili Srbija

Fiat

Government of Serbia

Ministry of Economy

Torino

Alfredo Altavilla

Korman field

Magneti Marelli

industrial park Korman field