Foundation stone laid for Polish VW plant

Volkswagen has held a foundation stone ceremony for its new commercial vehicle plant in Poland

Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles has marked the start of the construction of its new Wrzesnia plant in Poland with a foundation stone ceremony, the commemorative event attended by VW executives, local authorities and members of the Polish government.

The new plant, which will sprawl over 220 hectares and create up to 3000 jobs, will produce the next generation of VW's Crafter light commercial vehicle from the end of 2016, and will complement VW's existing Polish production facility in nearby Poznan, which has built VW's Caddy and Transporter LCVs for the past 10 years.

Addressing over 200 guests, the Member of the Board of Management of Volkswagen AG with responsibility for commercial vehicles, Dr Leif Östling, said the new plant underlined Poland's importance on the world stage when it came to auto production.

"As a result of this investment the work force of the Volkswagen Group in Poland will grow to over 16,000 employees in the next few years," he said.

"This will increase the importance of Poland as an international automobile location."

Work has already commenced on levelling and paving the site, which covers an area equivalent to 300 football fields. VW says that, when operational, the site will produce up to 100,000 vehicles each year.

Jens Ocksen, Chairman of the Board of Management of Volkswagen Poznan, said the new site offered many advantages.

"Wrzesnia offers us the best economic, infrastructural and labour market conditions," he said.

Foundation stone laid for Polish VW plant

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