March 27 (SeeNews) - German car maker Daimler has invested 36 million euro ($38.9 million) in a new production facility for planetary gears in Cugir, in the central Romanian county of Alba, its local subsidiary Star Transmission said on Friday.
The new unit covers 11.000 sq m and will create 200 new jobs, Star Transmission said in a press release. It will make planetary gears for Mercedez-Benz nine-speed automatic transmission gearboxes.
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"This new investment at Cugir is part of our bigger plan to gradually increase our planetary gears production capacity," Star Transmission said.
In August, Daimler invested 13 million euro in a new 4,000 sq m production facility for high-pressure pipelines in Cugir, which employs 150.
Four months earlier, it launched a transmission gearbox production line at its Sebes assembly plant in central Romania, the latest stage of a 300 million euro investment launched three years ago for the expansion of nine-speed automatic transmission gearbox production line for Mercedez-Benz cars. The investment project received 37.4 million euro in state aid. Currently, some 500 people work at the plant.
Star Transmission was established in 2001 as an international supplier of components for the automotive industry.
The Cugir plant manufactures gears, shafts and mechanical components for engines, gearboxes and steering boxes. The company also offers engineering services.
At its other headquarter in Sebes, Daimler makes 5-, 7- and 9-speed automatic gearboxes.
The company currently has over 2,600 employees in Romania.
($=0.9253 euro)