BRATISLAVA, Sept. 13 (Xinhua) -- The official construction of the new plant of British carmaker Jaguar Land Rover started in Nitra, the Western Slovakia on Tuesday.
According to the company's CEO Ralph Speth, the total investment in the first phase exceeds 1.4 billion euros (1.57 billion U.S. dollars) through which the company wants to create 2,800 new jobs. The first cars should roll off the production lines in the second half of 2018.
"This is our first plant in the continental Europe, and Europe itself is an important market for us. Slovakia is situated in its heart, and therefore the location in Nitra is extremely useful. There is an excellent infrastructure and many of our suppliers are also close by," stressed Speth.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico sees the arrival of Jaguar to Slovakia as a great success.
"We had a dream to create a top-notch industrial park that would bring Slovakia to the first world league in terms of industry. I'm glad that such a world-class strategic park has been constructed in Nitra," said Fico.
Jaguar Land Rover is the fourth carmaker in Slovakia, besides Volkswagen, Kia Motors and PSA Peugeot Citroen. For the first time in history more than one million vehicles were produced in Slovakia last year.
