Valmet Automotive focuses on electric vehicles
Lehtikuva/Pekka SakkiFinnish Valmet Automotive has received another contract for manufacturing electric vehicles. Metso Group announced last week that it has signed a letter of intent, according to which the manufacturing of Think electric vehicle will be transferred from Norway to Valmet Automotive's factory in Uusikaupunki, Finland this year.
According to the company the manufacturing process of Think City will employ about 50 people this year. From the beginning of 2010 the need for employees will increase to more than 100 people.
Think City is already the third electric vehicle manufactured in Uusikaupunki.
-We will soon be manufacturing three different kinds of electric vehicles: the Think electric car, the Fisker Karma luxury hybrid and the Garia golf car. The expertise gained from these projects furthers the development of our electric vehicle business alongside conventional vehicles, says the President of Valmet Automotive, Ilpo Korhonen.
Due to the manufacture of new electric cars, the focus of Valmet's production will move increasingly towards electric vehicles. Although the main product of Valmet's Uusikaupunki factory will remain to be Porche, will the manufacturing quantity of electric cars escalate to a considerable proportion of the factory's production.
Last year the factory produced about 17,000 Porches. The planned production volumes of Think City and Fisker Karma are several thousands cars per year.
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