Magneti Marelli plans expansion
Valor Econômico
Magneti Marelli, a Fiat group company for the auto parts segment, should increase the productive capacity in some of the lines of business it operates in Brazil until 2014, due to the good perspectives for the car industry. Without disclosing the value of the investment planned for Brazil in the next five years, the President of Magneti Marelli in the Mercosur, Virgilio Cerutti, said that a new productive line for car injection nozzles should be installed in 2011 in the Hortolândia (SP) plant, which was opened in January last year. "We may also increase the capacity of the automatic gear line, because the makers themselves are popularizing them, so sales should grow", said the Executive, after the presentation of a new family of equipment focused on the car aftermarket.
According to Cerutti, the company works in 2010 with the projections of the National Association of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers (Anfavea) of production of 3.4 million cars in the country, with a growth of nearly 6.5% compared to 2009, and they should keep investments in new technologies at nearly 7% of the annual earnings, as well as increasing its productive capacity. Last year, Magneti Marelli Mercosur registered earnings of R$ 2.245 billion (US$ 1.14 billion), with an increase of R$ 45 million (US$ 24.6 million) compared to 2008's - in the same period, the international earnings of the group was € 4.4 billion, with a fall of € 1 billion in the same basis of comparison. "Brazil and China were the only countries where there was growth in earnings", he said.
Despite the decision of increasing the productive capacity, the group, which has 13 plants in Brazil, located in the States of São Paulo and Minas Gerais, does not intend to invest in new plants. "We have enough room in the plants we already have", said the President, ruling out the possibility of Magneti Marelli's having manufacturing operations in other States in Brazil.