Renault invests €50m in Algerian plant

PARIS, FRANCE: Renault will invest €50m in its first assembly plant in Algeria, aimed at the oil-rich country's booming market, the group told AFP on Thursday (20 December).

An agreement for the joint venture was signed on Wednesday (19 December) at the start of a highly symbolic visit by President Francois Hollande to the former colony where he acknowledged his country's century of "brutal" colonial rule.

The plant, to be built in the second city of Oran, will cost €1bn and the Algerian state will hold a 51% stake in the venture with Renault owning the rest.

The factory will produce Renault Symbols, a saloon based on its Clio compact sold mainly in markets where hatchbacks are not traditionally favoured.

It will have a capacity of 25,000 vehicles annually from 2014 when it opens, rising to a maximum yearly output of 75,000 vehicles.

The company, faced with plummeting sales in Europe, said it will make strategic investments overseas, notably in Russia and China.

Source: AFP via I-Net Bridge