“Hungary is amongst Europe’s frontrunners from the perspective of both economic competitiveness and security”, Minister of Foreign Affairs and Trade Péter Szijjártó declared at the official inauguration of Modine Hungária Ltd.’s new production plant in Mezőkövesd on Tuesday.

Mr. Szijjártó called the investment project another significant Hungarian economic success, stressing that in international economic life there is an “incredible and insane competition going on for investments, the confidence of large corporations and jobs”. A new era has begun in the global economy, “a modern-age industrial revolution is ongoing, the flagship of which is the automotive industry”, he added.

“The task of the Hungarian economy is to remain successful in this new era, and based on the results so far the country is not only standing its ground, but is one of the most successful in Europe”, the Minister declared, pointing out that in 2017 the national economy broke all previous records with exports in excess of 100 billion euros, while the number of major new investment projects increased to 96 from 71 in the previous year. According to Mr. Szijjártó, this achievement required Hungary to have the lowest level of taxes in Europe, but a highly trained, diligent workforce as well as security had also been essential.

The Minister explained that some 29 percent of the performance of the processing industry is generated by the automotive industry, which provides jobs for 175 thousand people and exports 92 percent of its products. Following last year’s record, this January the industry achieved a further increase of 10 percent.

Mr. Szijjártó said the fact that Hungary had also achieved a successful era transition within this field is mirrored by the fact that Audi began the production of its electric car motors in Hungary, Samsung SDI has brought the production of its batteries destined for electric cars to Hungary, and German companies Bosch, Continental and ThyssenKrupp have brought their research and development activities to Hungary. Accordingly, Hungary is still the flagship of the continent’s automotive industry”, the Minister declared.

He highlighted the fact that the 6.2 billion forint (EUR 19.8 million) capacity expansion realised in Mezőkövesd by U.S. company Modine, which employs over 11 thousand people on 5 continents, is yet another investment that represents state-of-the-art technology, and said the Government had contributed 3.1 billion forints (EUR 9.9 million) in development tax subsidies towards the realisation of the project.

The Minister also spoke about the fact that the 1700 American enterprises operating in Hungary now represent the second largest investment community and employs over 100 thousand Hungarian workers. “The United States is our number one export market outside the European Union, and the Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency is currently in negotiation with 11 American companies with relation to further investments, and successfully brokered ten major American investments last year”, he indicated.

The Ministry for National Economy’s Minister of State for Parliamentary and Tax Affairs and the region’s Member of Parliament András Tállai spoke about the fact that in the midst of the global economic crisis the Government had already set the goal of protecting jobs and increasing employment.

Thanks to having introduced the required measures and created the required economic environment, since then unemployment has fallen from 12 percent to just 3.8 percent, and 735 thousand new jobs have been created. “In Mezőkövesd, 33 percent more people are now working compared to eight years ago and, thanks also to Modine Hungária Ltd., the city and its vicinity has become one of the country’s most rapidly developing regions”, he said.

Executive Vice President of Modine Manufacturing Company Thomas Marry highlighted the fact that the company, which was founded 120 years ago, found an ideal location in Mezőkövesd and an excellent partner in both the Hungarian Government and the Hungarian Investment Promotion Agency for its latest investment, which will create 200 new jobs. The new plant, which was constructed over the past year, will manufacture cooling equipment for heavy good vehicles and other commercial vehicles, and plans for the upcoming years include the further expansion of the company’s Hungarian subsidiary, he explained.

Managing Director of Modine Hungária Ltd. Zoltán Németh told the press that manufacturing of aluminium oil coolers and charge-air coolers begin in Mezőkövesd in 2015, but it soon transpired that the plant and its area require further expansion. The Government helped the company by declaring the neighbouring farmland a priority area for business development, he said, recalling that the mandatory archaeological survey conducted prior to construction had unearthed Sarmatian artefacts from the 5th century.

Mayor Zoltán Ferkete (Fidesz-KDNP) highlighted the fact that in recent years the company, which is the city’s largest employer and contributor of local taxes, has realised development of unprecedented magnitude that has opened a new chapter in the history of Mezőkövesd and brought full employment to within arm’s reach.

Modine, which realised 1.5 billion dollars in turnover in the 2017 financial year, manufactures thermal engineering equipment and parts and distributes cooling and heating equipment and systems on global markets. The multinational company has its headquarters in the United States, in Racine, Wisconsin, and operates plants in North America, South America, Europe, Asia and Africa.

Modine Hungária Ltd.’s plant in Mezőkövesd, which has been operating since 1991, is the concern’s most successful European facility and also one of the largest employers in Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén County. Its other Hungarian facility, its plant in Gyöngyös, which was built within the framework of a greenfield project, is one of Heves County’s largest employers.

(MTI)