Austria's Vossloh Kiepe postpones factory construction in Novi Sad due to elections

(Photo: Milica Stevuljević)

Early parliamentary elections in Serbia have put off the start of construction of a factory of Vossloh Kiepe, the Viennese manufacturer of air-conditioning systems for railway vehicles, the Vienna economic daily Wirtschaftsblatt claims.

The Austrian company intends to set up the production of air conditioning systems in the free zone in Novi Sad.

Vossloh Kiepe CEO Peter Pihler says that the implementation of that investment might have been faster if there were not for elections.

This company plans to invest EUR 1.25 million in the set-up of one production line in Serbia.

Serbia is an interesting market for the modernization of trams, intercity and regional trains. Vossloh Kiepe's long-term plan is to market its products in the Commonwealth of Independent States, and concrete deals are already being negotiated.

Pihler hopes they will be able to fulfill the agreement in mid-2014.