September 27 (SeeNews) - Continental Romania, part of German-based automotive parts manufacturer Continental, said on Tuesday that it has invested six million euro ($6.74 million) in a new research and engineering centre in the city of Brasov.
The new centre will employ 60 engineers and will be dedicated to developing Continental's 'Fuel&Exhaust Management' commercial unit, the company said in a statement.
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Brasov, in central Romania, is one of the country's six cities in which Continental is present. Currently, there are over 1,400 people working for Continental Brasov, in a 60,000 sq m space.
In May, Continental said it had invested 12 million euro to expand its plant in Timisoara county, in western Romania. The expansion project adds 7,000 sq m to the plant's total area, which will reach 21,000 sq m upon the completion of the works scheduled for end-2016.
Continental said in March that it planned to hire over 1,000 people in Romania by the end of the year, mostly university graduates and engineers with expertise in the automotive industry and software.
Continental currently has 16,500 employees in Romania, of whom 1,500 were hired in 2015.
Last year, the company invested some 130 million euro ($145 million) in Romania - in technology upgrades, new buildings and software.
In November it completed a project worth 10.5 million euro for the installation of an olfactory emissions treatment system in the plant.
Continental Tires Timisoara is the company's first and largest investment in Romania. Since 1998, when the plant was set up as a greenfield investment, it has absorbed over 370 million euro in investments and has produced more than 165 million tires.
Continental is present in Romania with all five divisions of the group and owns seven production units and three research and development centres located in Timisoara, Sibiu, Carei, Nadab, Brasov and Iasi. Continental is also a partner in a joint venture in Slatina and has a tire distribution centre for Eastern Europe at Sacalaz, in Timis County.
The company estimates that it has invested 1.13 billion euro in Romania over the period 1999-2015.
($=0.8896 euro)