“Swiss-based company Flisom has chosen Kecskemét as the location of its first investment in Hungary, and will be establishing a solar panel production plant in the Great Plain city with an investment of 12.5 billion forints (EUR 35 million)”, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó announced at a press conference in Budapest on Tuesday.

Mr. Szijjártó added that the government is providing 3.5 billion forints (EUR 9.8 million) in non-returnable cash funding towards the investment project, which represents state-of-the-art technology, and will be creating particularly high-added-value workplaces. The Minister said the investment will be creating 140 new jobs in its first phase, but the company’s management it planning to triple the plant’s capacity over a period of three years.
The new plant in Kecskemét will manufacture solar panels that are 98 percent lighter than traditional panels. These flexible solar panels can be cut to any size, and thanks to their minimal weight can also be installed onto the top of vehicles and lightweight buildings. The investment project is also important in view of the fact that Hungary’s energy strategy has set as its goal that 90 percent of Hungary’s electricity production must be carbon-free by 2030. The government wishes to achieve this goal via the utilisation of solar power and nuclear energy, and the expansion of the Paks Nuclear Power Plant will be contributing to the latter. According to Mr. Szijjártó, the investment project may also be regarded as East-West cooperation, in view of the fact that the Indian Tata Group is a majority shareholder in Flisom.

The Minister told the press that during the coronavirus pandemic the number one goal is the protection of human life, but the rebooting of certain economies is also highly important for states. “This is why the Hungarian government has developed the Economy Protection Action Plan, the primary goal of which is to save endangered workplaces and to create new jobs to replace those that have been affected by the global pandemic, but new jobs requires bringing new investors to Hungary”, the Minister explained.

Mr. Szijjártó said that in his opinion the investments that have arrived in the country over the past three weeks prove that the government’s economic policy strategy, which has been developed to include further tax cuts, favourable loan opportunities and an investment promotion system to ensure that Hungary remains the most attractive investment destination in Central Europe, is correct.

In a video message, CEO of Flisom Rahul Budhwar said that in Switzerland the company produces the plastic film that is suitable for the production of solar panels, which can also be installed on, for instance, heavy goods vehicles, buses and consumer electronic goods. Technological development is performed in Switzerland, where the company also has a small production unit. He noted, however, that the company has been searching for the opportunity to expand and establish a larger production capacity. “From among the possible locations worldwide, Hungary, and within it Kecskemét, was chosen because of the outstanding performance of Hungarian engineers and skilled workers, and because of the significant level of funding provided by the Hungarian government”, he stated.

(Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade/MTI)