Germany's Eberspächer will double the production of heaters for electric vehicles in its plant in the Bulgarian city of Ruse in 2024, the company told the Capital Weekly. The statement came following media publications that Eberspächer was closing down and selling its new factory in Ruse to Gebauer & Griller Group (GG Group).
The Austrian group recently announced plans to manufacture critical components for automotive and industrial applications in Ruse, with pre-serial production due to start this summer. The city on the Danube remains an important location for Eberspächer, the company said.
The German investor
Eberspächer announced its plans to open a plant in Russe in the spring of 2022, when it registered a local entity, Eberspächer Bulgaria. The company purchased a plot of 80,000 sq. m in the Slatina industrial zone and construction works started later that year. Meanwhile, due to strong demand for heating systems, in early 2023 production was arranged in a temporary facility until the new building was completed.
The company's financial report for 2023 has not been yet published. Data in the APIS corporate register show it had 133 employees as of October.
"With more than 100 employees, the plant is well utilized and can cover the planned growth. In 2024, the production volume will double. This establishes Ruse as the third important European location of Eberspächer for the production of electrical vehicle heaters, after Herxheim, Germany and Olawa, Poland," the company told the Capital Weekly.
The Austrian group
Meanwhile, last summer GG Group announced that it would invest 29 million euro in a plant in Ruse over the next five years and create about 400 new jobs in the production of critical components. A local subsidiary, GG Cables and Wires Bulgaria, was registered. The company said it would build a 13,000 sq. m plant, with the land plot already provided. Pre-serial production is planned to begin this summer, with serial production due to start in the summer of 2025.
The short time was obviously the reason why the company tried to find a quick solution. "In summer/fall 2023 Eberspächer was approached by a company from Austria (GG Group). It urgently needed production capacities in Ruse and therefore took over the building under construction and will finalize it for its own purposes," the German company told the Capital Weekly but did not specify if GG Group bought or rented the property. There is no information about transfer in the Property Register. That probably means that Eberspächer will continue operating in its temporary premises, at least for now. "The Eberspächer team of over 100 employees in the existing plant in Ruse continues as it was," the company said.
Germany's Eberspächer will double the production of heaters for electric vehicles in its plant in the Bulgarian city of Ruse in 2024, the company told the Capital Weekly. The statement came following media publications that Eberspächer was closing down and selling its new factory in Ruse to Gebauer & Griller Group (GG Group).
The Austrian group recently announced plans to manufacture critical components for automotive and industrial applications in Ruse, with pre-serial production due to start this summer. The city on the Danube remains an important location for Eberspächer, the company said.
