Hoerbiger Automotive is the first investor to locate its plant in the Bolesławiec subzone of the Wałbrzych Special Economic Zone “Invest-Park”. On 17 March, in the Councillors’ Hall, Mayor Piotr Roman and Hans-Joachim Krumholz and Siegmar Erwin Schlagau, members of the company’s management board, signed a notarial deed concerning the sale of three undeveloped plots on Modłowa Street. The total area of the parcels is approximately 7.5 hectares. The City Hall sold the land for nearly 3.5 million złoty.
The Hoerbiger Group has an established position worldwide among companies in the automotive industry. It employs nearly 6,000 people in more than 40 countries. It specialises in the production of, among other things, components for compressors and gearboxes. Well-known brands such as Mercedes and BMW use its products.
Hoerbiger is a company with German-Swiss capital. “We have one Swiss company in Bolesławiec, and it is highly rated by its employees as an excellent employer,” says Mayor Piotr Roman. “I think we can count on that in this case as well,” he adds.
In Bolesławiec, Hoerbiger plans to invest 47 million złoty. The Group is initially expected to employ around 100 people. Ultimately, as many as 400 employees may find work here. Construction of the halls is due to begin soon. When the plant starts operating depends on the construction companies. The planned date is mid-November 2008.
The company can count on a range of incentives and exemptions in our city. “The regional aid programme adopted by the City Council allows entrepreneurs investing in Bolesławiec to apply for an exemption from property tax,” says Tomasz Gabrysiak, the mayor’s plenipotentiary for investor services. Moreover, the Group, which decided to invest in the Bolesławiec economic subzone, may apply for a 40-percent reimbursement of the costs incurred for constructing the plant and purchasing the land.
“I am not afraid that we will fail to find suitable staff,” says Kornelia Ordon, a member of Hoerbiger’s management board. As she acknowledges, the company will primarily seek employees characterised by precision, calmness and composure. An office of the German-Swiss investor has opened at 29 Daszyńskiego Street. Applications for jobs can be submitted there. Apparently, there is no shortage of applicants. Next week, the requirements the company sets for its future employees are to be specified.
The first investor, but not the last
The city authorities hope that the Hoerbiger name will attract more companies to Bolesławiec. “We are in talks with one Polish investor,” admits Piotr Roman. Negotiations are also under way with companies from Europe and beyond. According to the mayor, the location is a major asset of the Bolesławiec subzone. An interchange of the “Bolesławiec” motorway is being built nearby, among other things. In addition, in order to comprehensively prepare the area for investment, the municipality equipped it with water-supply, sewage and electricity networks, as well as road infrastructure.
(UM/GA information)