Spanish to invest 20m euros in Arad

Two Spanish companies have announced plans to invest 20 million euros in the Arad-Curtici Free Zone for the building of two factories. One of the companies will make metallic insertion rubber for the automotive industry. The other will produce membranes for the cold meats industry. The manager of the Arad Curtici Free Zone Administration, Mircea Pavel, told ZF Transilvania on Monday that the two Spanish companies had requested eight hectares of land on the Curtici platform of the Free Zone to erect their production facilities. “The is the first time for Spanish investors in Arad county. The investments will create nearly 400 jobs,” Pavel said. He explained that tenders for the land would be held in February, adding that the local authorities were also in talks with four other investors from Canada, United States, Belgium and France, who want to produce textiles and automotive components in Arad. Investments made in the Free Zone so far amount to 80 million dollars. The Free Zone is home to 110 companies that employ around 3,500 people. The rate of occupancy has reached 95% on the Arad platform, though it is only 50% on the Curtici platform. According to Pavel, Arad will run out of land by the middle of the year. ZF