The Rise of Electromobility, An Opportunity We Must Use
BUSINESS ROZHOVOR
14 ǀ POSITIV 1/2024
The Rise of Electromobility,
An Opportunity We Must Use
Their products are not immediately visible, however, without them, your car would be unable to
even start. Vitesco Technologies is one of the global leaders in the manufacturing of cung edge
technologies for the automove industry. They have been acve on the market for almost 30 years
now, though you would only know them under the Vitesco name over the last 5 years. This new
brand was launched through the separaon of the Powertrain division from Connental. This
turned out to be a great decision. Since their inial lisng on the stock exchange, their stock prices
have only risen and the company is truly prosperous. This year, Vitesco is planning to open a new
4.7 billion crown factory in Ostrava that will produce exclusively for electric cars. The rst phase of
the project will employ 150 people, and by 2027, when full capacity is reached, this gure will rise
to 1 000. We spoke to Libor Kývala, the nancial director of Vitesco Technologies ČR, about the
specics of this investment and much more.
Vitesco made a number of strategic
decisions in the past. What was
the reason behind your initial separation
from Continental?
Our decision was heavily based on
the global transformation of our field. We
placed our bets on green and took a dive
into clean and sustainable mobility. Now,
we are part of the large and ever expanding
Vitesco family, boasting over 50 locations
and 38 000 employees globally. We have
two manufacturing plants in Czechia,
one in Trutnov and the other in Frenštát
pod Radhoštěm, and a research and
development center in Ostrava-Hrabová. We
try to stay quick on our feet in our operation
of the two manufacturing locations, as the
world around us is constantly undergoing
turbulent change, and we know that change
is the future's only guarantee.
At the same time, you are also opening
a new facility in Ostrava, which is a key
step in your development strategy.
Our decision to make this investment
was not made overnight. We reached the
edge of our capacity at our Frenštát plant
in terms of our long-term strategy and
product portfolio. Over the past couple
of years we found ourselves lacking
sufficient storage space and had to look
for an external warehouse. We considered
many locations, from Frenštát to Brno.
I am, however, glad that we ended up
choosing Ostrava for our newest location.
This solution incorporates a large number
of factors that fit well into the mosaic of
our strategy. In addition, I believe that
the facility will provide many benefits
to the locals and play a role in ensuring
the long-term prosperity of the region.
Yet, the facility in Ostrava will be more
than just a warehouse.
Exactly, this project will principally include
the construction of a new manufacturing
plant featuring a highly automated logistics
center. Ostrava will be a sort of twin to our
Frenštát plant, though more of a fraternal
twin, as production in Hrušov will be purely
focused on electric vehicles. We followed
principles that maximize optimization,
automation and advanced robotics in
order to accommodate the specifics of
the production of electronic components
and maintain high cleanliness standards. We
are tapping into the 30 years of experience
in electronics we gained in Frenštát to tailor
this new facility to all our needs.
We are transferring one entire
production line from Frenštát to
Ostrava. The new plant will produce our