Japanese Yaskawa factory starts to rise in Kočevje

3. november 2017 ob 9.56 • Kočevje - MMC RTV SLO

The foundation stone for the construction of a new factory by Japanese group Yaskawa Electric Corporation was laid in Kočevje. Photo: BoBo

The foundation stone for the construction of a new factory by Japanese group Yaskawa Electric Corporation was laid in Kočevje yesterday. Once operational, the factory will have an output of 6,000 robots per year. If everything goes according to plan, the construction of the factory will be completed by the end of next year, or by spring 2019 at the latest. It will employ up to 200 people, which will be quite encouraging for a region with one of the highest unemployment rates in the country.

PM Miro Cerar said the arrival of Yaskawa is extremely important for Slovenia and Europe, and especially for the Kočevje region, as the new factory of the biggest producer of industrial robots in the world will contribute to an all-round development. The CEO of Yaskawa Europe, Manfred Stern, said that robots will not only be made in Kočevje, but that "we will have many engineers here who will develop new robots not only for Europe, but also for the global market."

Yaskawa, which employs 14,500 people – from that around 1,700 in Europe – makes 40,000 robots a year. Apart from the factory itself, Yaskawa will also plans to open a research and development centre in Kočevje, which will closely cooperate with Slovenia’s universities and institutes.

The total investment in the factory is valued at around 25 million euros. Slovenia will co-finance the project with 5,6 million euros.