April 23 (SeeNews) - Serbia has committed to build a 40 km metro line linking Belgrade to the town of Indjija in an attempt to attract a 1.4 billion euro ($1.6 billion) investment in a multi-brand factory of Volkswagen, local media reported on Tuesday.
The government has pitched Indjija as a potential location for the new factory, as it is located halfway between Belgrade and Novi Sad, facilitating the access to qualified personnel, daily Vecernje Novosti said.
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An alternative location for the factory is the town of Jagodina, Vecernje Novosti said.
Earlier this month Germany's DPA news agency reported that Volkswagen has narrowed its choice of potential destinations in Southeast Europe (SEE) for a planned new car factory to Bulgaria and Turkey. However, a spokesperson for Volkswagen denied the German media reports last week, saying that a decision has not been taken yet.
Volkswagen will make the final decision on the location of the new factory by November 2019, Vecernje Novosti said.
In November, Volkswagen chief Herbert Diess said the company was looking for a location for a 1.4 billion euro multi-brand factory in eastern Europe which is expected to start production after 2022. The company plans to move the production of the Skoda Karoq and Seat Ateca SUVs to the new factory, which would employ 5,000, from the plant in Kvasiny, the Czech Republic, Diess said back then.
($ = 0.888746 euro)