May 2 (SeeNews) - German automotive parts supplier Continental said on Tuesday it plans to invest some 170 million euro ($186 million) in Romania in 2017 and hire 1,500 people.
Continental Romania plans to invest in 2017 mainly in staff training, plant infrastructure and in state-of-the art equipment, it said in a press release.
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The company invested 170 million euro last year in Romania, mainly in infrastructure and equipment as well as in technology for its R&D centres and production locations.
"The company has invested 1.2 billion euro in Romania between 1999 and 2016, in modern production units, state-of-the-art equipment and innovative technologies, as well as in developing the skills of its employees," Continental Romania's general manager Christian von Albrichsfeld said.
Continental also plans to hire some 1,500 people in 2017, after contracting 1,700 new employees last year. "The open positions we have in 2017 are for experienced engineers, software and hardware specialists, mechanical engineers as well as for young graduates of the vocational school , which we want to employ in our R&D centers and factories in Romania," the company's human resources manager Anica Stoica said.
In April, Continental completed an expansion of its electronic components plant in Timisoara county, western Romania, following a 12 million euro investment.
In March, Continental said it plans to hire over 180 people at its fuel pump production unit in the Industrial Park Ghimbav in Brasov county, in central Romania.
Continental currently has 18,200 employees in Romania, of whom 1,700 were hired in last year.
In 2016, Continental invested 6 million euro into a new research and engineering centre in Brasov.
Continental is present in Romania with all five divisions of the group and owns seven production units and three research and development centres located in Timisoara, Sibiu, Carei, Nadab, Brasov and Iasi. Continental is also a partner in a joint venture in Slatina and has a tyre distribution centre in Bucharest.
($=0.9158 euro)