Romania: Koreans seek 3,000 people to manufacture Samsung LCDs in Oradea
Korean company Hanil Electronics, a supplier of components and equipment for Samsung, intends to invest approximately €30-40 million ($41-55 million) in the development of a new factory in Oradea, Bihor County, where LCD flat screens will be produced, according to the Ziarul Financiar.
The investment would be the first of its kind in an LCD factory in Romania. The development of the factory in Oradea could be tightly connected to a Samsung investment in Hungary worth €80 million ($109 million), which will manufacture modules for plasma TVs.
The Koreans entered the Romanian market in the summer of this year, and now own production facilities in Santandrei, where Hanil Electronics operates with approximately 100 employees. The Korean company is currently in talks with the Oradea City Hall to purchase 17 hectares of land that the municipality owns beyond the Iosia district, on the current location of a swine farm, Nutrientul Palota. As the land belongs to the municipality and the buildings to Nutrientul, the City Hall will have to persuade the company to sell its buildings.
Despite the advanced stage of the negotiations, the Koreans at Hanil will not make any official statements before the extraordinary meeting of the local council set for September 18. “All I can say is that the figures and goals mentioned during the meetings with city officials are real and accurate. However, we do not have a representative appointed to provide information on this project yet,” said one of Hanil Electronics’ managers.
The company anticipates that 3,400 people will work in the new factory, where they will manufacture Samsung flat screen computer monitors and then TV sets along with partner companies, such as Hanil’s Investment, Dongyang Creditech’s Investment, P-K’s Investment and Koam’S Investment.
“They have asked us to talk to the University and the County Board of Education of Bihor to analyse the possibility of introducing specialist courses to train young people with whom they could sign contracts while they are still in school or college,” stated Marcel Bolos, head of the Real Estate Administration and one of the main negotiators with Hanil.
The company also requested that the municipality create a kindergarten class and a class where courses are taught in English for the Koreans’ children. “Around 50 of the company’s employees will move to Romania together with their families and the company has requested education and recreation facilities,” explained Bolos.
Established in December 1986, Hanil Electronics was registered as a component supplier for Samsung Electronics home appliances in May 1987. The company began making components for IBM in 1992 and then diversified its production. In 1996, Hanil opened a branch in Malaysia. Expansion into Mexico followed in 1998, and in 1999 the company was established in Hong Kong, followed by a branch in China. The decision to expand onto the Romanian market was made this year. (zf.ro)
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