21.01.2009

Liebherr breaks ground in Russia

Liebherr has held the official ground breaking ceremony for its new plant at Dzerzhinsk in the Nizhny Novgorod region of Russia.

The ceremony included the placing of a time capsule into the foundations of the facility. Willy Liebherr, co-owner of Liebherr and Valery Shantsev, the governor of the Nizhny Novgorod, attended the event. The capsule contains a message to progeny in Russian and German.
Please register to see all images

Willy Liebherr and Valery Shantsev place the time capsule in the first part of the plant's foundations

Liebherr and Shantsev exchanged gifts before the opening ceremony. Liebherr presented a bottle of wine he had made himself, and Shantsev, a photo album of Nizhny Novgorod.
Please register to see all images

Willy Liebherr,(L) presents Valery Shantsev with a bottle of his wine

Turkish contractor Renaissance Construction will carry out construction work on the 12 hectare site, with the buildings scheduled in two stages. The first stage is scheduled for completion this year and includes buildings for hydraulic component and transmission production, metal processing and tower crane assembly as well as aircraft equipment.
Please register to see all images

The new plant is on a greenfield site

The cost of the first stage is estimated at around €200 million, excluding tools and equipment which is to be supplied and installed by Liebherr. Completion of the second stage is scheduled to 2011. The new plant will create 600 jobs.

As to future products for the facility, Liebherr said that this totally depends on the economic situation.Initially it will focus on production of components for construction equipment and aircraft industry. With the eye on to add final assembly of both earth moving equipment and cranes in the future.

Willy Liebherr said: “We are committed to the Russian market but cannot yet define the top production volume. We believe that the best remedy for the current economic situation is to work even harder.”
Please register to see all images

The new Liebherr plant in Dzerzhinsk - Nizhny Novgorod

The Nizhny Novgorod region government is forecast annual tax receipts from the plant of around €11.4 million and has provided €1.2 million for communications and infrastructure construction. Liebherr Nizhny Novgorod JSC is also likely to qualify for tax and other incentives.

Mikhail Ledovskikh, head of Renaissance Construction in Russia said: “This plant is not the most complex of our projects, more than 300 workers are already involved in construction work on the site; five percent of them from the local area, with the balance from other parts of Russia as well as Turkey.”

“Liebherr equipment will be used for the plant construction, thanks to the company’s wide range it can be used at each and every stage of the construction. Materials will be purchased from Russian manufacturers, with 50 percent coming from suppliers in the Nizhny Novgorod region.

Reporting by Elena Isayko of Vertikal Net.Russia