Skoda Could Stop Car Production in Vrchlabi

Although the company is looking into ways to boost production in the future and thus increase revenues and sales, Skoda Auto might stop producing cars in Vrchlabi, looking to concentrate its local workforce on other car parts. A report by Czech publication CTK citing Skoda Chairman Winfried Vahland indicates that the automaker could pull the production switch in a few years, but a final decision is yet to be made.

Although the plan is still under consideration, Skoda is expected to release an announcement regarding the future of the Vrchlabi plant by the end of 2012, the aforementioned source informed.

Meanwhile, Skoda is working hard to support the growth the company is experiencing in multiple markets and officials have already hinted that sales are expected to more than double in 2011. Skoda intends to deliver at least 1.5 million cars in the next 12 months, with the main focus to be on European markets, Russia, India and China.

These are already Skoda's most important markets, and the latest sales figures are proving that these specific locations are generating the biggest profits for the Czech carmaker. In India, deliveries rose 33.3 percent to 17,800 vehicles in the first eleven months, while China saw an increase of 56.2 percent over the previous year’s level, with 167,000 units sold to date. In Russia, 41,500 vehicles were sold, marking a plus of 37.9 percent.

Of course, altering the production plan by focusing the Vrchlabi operations on car parts alone might influence the company's goals in one way or another, but Skoda will most likely roll out a more significant production plan for the next years that would cover the majority or areas it is working on.