The foreign minister has confirmed that Audi Hungária is expanding its tools plant in Győr, in north-west Hungary, investing HUF 3.8 billion (EUR 10.5m).
Péter Szijjártó, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade, said the government is supporting the investment with a HUF 1.2 billion grant, which is expected to preserve 700 jobs. He praised Audi’s cooperation in the coronavirus protection effort, noting the company had helped in the inoculation of some 3,000 people so far and will take on a similar effort in the near future.
Minister Szijjártó insisted that Hungary’s response to the pandemic in terms of protecting the economy and providing health care was “the most successful in Europe”. German companies, which decided to use government support and invest in Hungary rather than laying off employees, had a great role in that success, he added. German automotive companies alone make up 30 percent of Hungarian industrial output and employ 170,000 people, he added.
The minister added that with all domestic players focusing on electro-mobility, Hungary hopes to strengthen its leading role in the industry “in the new era of car manufacturing”. Audi’s plant in Győr makes electric motors using technologies that are essential for economic renewal, he said.
Alfons Dintner, the head of Audi Hungária’s board, thanked the government for its support and said the construction works to enlarge the manufacturing plant by 3,800sqm and the logistics plant by 2,500sqm would be ready by the summer of 2022.