German group Bosch, whose business involves electrical tools, automotive parts and accessories, and heating substations, plans to double its business in Romania in 2006.
"We want to have 100 million-euro sales on the Romanian market in 2006," Wolfgang Chur, a member of Bosch's Board of Directors said in Bucharest at the end of last week.
The company is present on the Romanian market with a three-department sales structure: electrical tools, which account for 54% of its turnover, automotive parts and accessories, and heating substations, each accounting for 23% of the sales. The company's electrical tool division has a 48% share of the market in Romania.
"We intend to develop a range of products on the segment of automotive parts for the markets with low purchasing power," the representative of the German group stated.
Robert Bosch Romania posted approximately 48 million-euro turnover last year, an increase of 22% on 2004.
The Bosch Group last year announced its first investment in a production facility in Blaj, through the Bosch Rexroth division, which should see the German player expand its Romanian operations on the manufacturing segment.
The company officials say about 11 million euros will be invested in Blaj in a greenfield project for manufacturing of high precision equipment used in the machine building industry and automation systems worldwide.
This project will create 300 jobs. Bosch representatives say the plant in Blaj will begin operations in 2007 and reach maximum capacity early in 2008. The entire plant will take up 12,000 square metres.
The investment in the Alba county is the most important the group is making in South-Eastern Europe.
One of the main reasons that prompted Bosch to choose this location was the partnership it has had in place with IAMU Blaj since the '90s.
Wolfgang Chur added t
