Shimizu to build car components plant in Liberec

Japanese company Shimizu Industry is planning to build a new production plant for plastic components for the car industry in the town of Liberec, North Bohemia. The project is expected to cost over 12 million USD and create at least 60 new jobs. Construction of the new plant should start in August and its completion is planned for February 2003. Most of the production will be intended for the Czech automotive industry.

Japanese investors were cautious to invest in Central Europe too soon after the fall of communism but the past few years have seen an influx of Japanese investment as the transition period is nearly over. A total of 93 Japanese companies are registered in the Czech Republic, of which 36 are production companies. According to the Czech government's agency CzechInvest, which helps foreign companies place their investment in the Czech Republic, Japanese investors have pledged to invest almost 2 billion USD and create over 20,000 direct jobs in the Czech Republic.