Americans invest $11.5m in two Romanian plants

American company Wisconsin Machine Tools Systems (WMTS), the main shareholder of SARO Targoviste, a machine and equipment producer, and of Titan Componente de Precizie Bucuresti, has so far invested 11.5 million dollars in Romania, WMTS chairman Patrick F. Cherone stated.

WMTS in April this year took over SARO Targoviste, where it currently develops investments worth six million dollars for modernising the technologic process and diversifying the range of products.

Patrick F. Cherone estimates that, in the following three years, investments will stand at 20 million dollars and turnover will amount to 30 million dollars, the American company working on two projects, one in the medium term (two years) and the other in the long term (five years).

The company produces and sells various types of lathes, oil drilling equipment, forged machine parts and moulds, screw cutting machines and numerical lathes of the CNC type.

“We are the leaders as far as the quality of our equipment is concerned and we have a deep knowledge of all aspects linked to metal processing,” Cherone added.

“Using as an advantage our capacities and experience, our customers manage to improve their products, their productivity and profitability,” WMTS chairman said.

“This year, we will post turnover of about 4 million dollars, of which three quarters will be provided by exports,” Ion Stanciu, Saro Targoviste commercial manager told Ziarul Financiar.

“Next year, sales will register a significant increase, standing at about six million dollars,” he added, explaining that exports’ level will go up to approximately 80%. The main foreign market of Saro is the United States, followed by Italy, France, Germany, Greece and Turkey.

Saro exports very modern numerically controlled machines, which are very competitive as compared to the products of foreign competitors.

“At present, the American party is drawing a market survey with a view to adapting output to the demands of the world market,” Gheorghe Brutan, Saro Targoviste technical manager, told Ziarul Financiar.

Last year, Saro posted turnover of 45.6 billion lei and its net profit amounted to 313 million lei, of which 118 million lei were granted as dividends.

The company currently employs 530 people. WTMS holds 70% in Saro share capital, another significant shareholder being SIF (Financial Investment Company) Oltenia, with 25% of the share capital.

Saro Targoviste has a share capital of 118 billion lei, divided in shares having a face value of 25,000 de lei. The company’s shares are traded on the Rasdaq market, the latest average price, dating from September 22, amounting to 2,000 lei. The company took part in Targul International Bucuresti (TIB-the Bucharest International Fair), where it featured its entire range of products.

The equipment market over the first seven months of the year stood at 11,913 billion lei, almost half of the output being aimed at exports, according to the National Commission for Statistics.

The American group WMTS is also the majority shareholder of equipment producer Titan Componente de Precizie Bucuresti, the investment made in this company amounting to about six million dollars.

The company has a share capital of 1.6 billion lei, divided in shares having a face value of 1,000 lei. The company’s shares have been traded on Rasdaq market since February 1997, the latest average price registered on May 12, 2000 amounting to 2,000 lei.

Last year, Titan Componente de Precizie Bucuresti, which was renamed and became Wisconsin Precision Components, posted net profit worth 847 million lei, against turnover standing at 6.6 billion lei, of which almost a quarter was derived from exports. The company currently employs about one hundred people.