Porsche Romania, one of the largest auto importers on the local market, will invest 30 million Deutsche marks in the construction of the largest auto complex in Romania, to be located in Bucharest.
The complex will be bigger than the space allocated to the latest edition of the Bucharest Auto Show and will comprise service spaces and show rooms for the Volkswagen and Audi brands, imported by Porsche Romania.
Th complex will spread on more than 52,500 square metres, matching in size the Bucharest Mall, while the deadline for construction works is two years.
According to analysts, one of the possible reasons for such an investment is the success posted by many foreign brands. The total value of new imported autos sold this year in Romania amounts to about 300 million dollars.
In the case of Porsche Romania, the total value of new cars sold in 2001 may stand at 90 million dollars, while the company’s market share revolves around 29%.
“The investment is significant for the evolution of the Romanian market and shows that the market has matured. This is the largest investment at present, but other companies are also running similar programmes, depending on available funds,” Marius Carp, executive manager of the Association of Romanian Auto Producers and Importers (APIA), told Ziarul Financiar.
Most auto importers in Romania have followed the same trend lately, providing customers and potential clients with a complete range of services: display and sale (show-room), guarantee and spare parts (service), post-guarantee and financial incentives and installments and leasing contracts, through their own or preferred companies.
Consequently, the number of imported cars sold on the Romanian market has already reached half of the sales of local autos.
According to APIA statistics and surveys, imported brands attained the level of 2,420 sold units in October 2001 (19,116 for the first ten months), as compared to 4,512 units sold by local producers (40,155 units for the first ten months of 2001).
According to data released by APIA for October, the results of Porsche Romania are a success. The company sold 928 units last month (all the imported brands: Volkswagen, Audi, Skoda, Seat and Porsche), while total sales for the first ten months of the year stand at 6,844 units.
Analysts forecast annual growth rate of 9-10 percent for this year, while the Volkswagen and Audi brands, together with Opel, are among the best-selling autos on the second-hand market.
The construction site for the auto complex will be inaugurated tomorrow and will be attended by representatives of the families owning the Porsche Holding, Dr. Wolfgang Porsche and Dr. Hand Michael Piech, and by officials of the Romanian Government.