ST. PETERSBURG, Russia - Hyundai Motor Manufacturing Rus (HMMR) is gearing up to add a second shift and over thousand workers at its St. Petersburg plant in 2011.
According to local newswire Prime-Tass, HMMR will introduce a second shift most probably between March and May, while it will increase the number of employees from current 1,200 to 2,400 by the end of next year. The South Korean company also plans to launch third shift in 2012.
Hyundai Motor officially inaugurated its $500 million manufacturing facility in St. Petersburg on September 21st, with serial production scheduled to begin in next January. Annual production capacity of the plant will be 105,000 vehicles in the first year, which will increase to 150,000 units in 2012. The facility, which carries out full-cycle manufacturing, will produce the Solaris sedan and hatchback, as well as a new small car under the Kia brand.
The company plans to sell 85,000 units of Solaris annually in Russia starting next year.
