The announcement of a €200 million investment to produce the model is to be made as part of a visit to the plant Wednesday by Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy.
The agreement will integrate 10 plants in India and six in Europe with a total of 10,000 employees and enable CIE to increase its annual sales by more than one-third, from €1.6 billion to €2.2 billion.
The government says it is looking into possible price-fixing by auto dealers, distributors and maintenance facilities, but emphasizes the probe only is in its preliminary stage.
The new vehicles eventually will replace the Atleon range, which currently is assembled in Avila along with a lighter range, the Cabstar, which remains on the market for now.
First-quarter Spanish-built vehicles’ share of the domestic market approached 38%, due largely to the economic difficulties that spurred demand for locally made, relatively inexpensive cars.
Industry officials expect this year’s proportion of used-car to new-car buyers will match last year’s record of 2.3:1, more than double the ratio in the pre-recession year of 2007.
German Lopez, chairman of Volvo Car Spain, says the red ink resulted from the overall contraction of the country’s automobile market and the delayed arrival of the new V40 5-door hatchback. He expects a return...
The event will feature one-third fewer brands than in 2011, which organizers attribute to the steadily declining Spanish car market and the high cost of participation.
Subsidies are raised in only one category, which could help determine the true range of some EVs when their manufacturers apply for the additional €500.