Rossignolo Rents Pininfarina Grugliasco Plant

Italian businessman Gianmario Rossignolo managed to sign a preliminary deal with Italian carmaker Pininfarina for the use of one of its facilities. Rossignolo, who earlier this year fought for control of Carrozzeria Bertoni with giant Fiat, will rent the Grugliasco facility and use it for the assembly of a range of aluminum vehicles based on a construction technology called Univis.

According to Autonews, the deal between Rossignolo and the plant was done through FinPiemonte Partecipazioni, a Piedmont Region owned financial holding. FinPiemonte will pay 15 million euros for the plant, which will be rented to Rossignolo's company, Auto Industry, for 650,000 a year, for a six year contract. The businessman will pay an additional 2 million euros for the equipment and the 900 workers of the facility.

The plant will be used, as said, for the construction of a new range of vehicles. Reportedly, they may be badged as De Tomaso vehicles. The Univis technology will allow for a car to be built is some 30 days. The first car to be built here is, according to Rossignolo, a crossover. By 2011, he will invest some 120 million euros in the facility, which is scheduled to produce around 3,000 units a year in the near future.

As for Pininfarina, it will continue to assemble Alfa Romeo and Ford models at the San Giorgio Canavese and Bairo Canavese plants, until spring 2011. The company will remain with a workforce of around 800 people, from the 1,699 people at the end of last year. Pininfarina stated that the deal with Rossignolo does not include its wind-tunnel in the Grugliasco complex.