Automotive Industry

An international hub

The country’s strongly growing automotive sector, numbering 700 companies and 175,000 employees, currently generates 22.5 billion euros per annum. The automotive industry is one of Austria’s most important industrial sectors, producing 2.5 million engines and gearboxes, 248,000 passenger cars, 69,000 motorcycles, 26,650 heavy goods vehicles, 26,000 trailers and tractors annually. The export ratio is 87 percent.

Automotive manufacturers and components suppliers who are active worldwide, such as BMW, Opel, Saab, Magna and MAN, are continually setting up new and substantial investment and development projects in Austria. The German automobile manufacturer BMW will have its new MINI SUV sports utility vehicle assembled in Graz. The new vehicle model will be launched in 2010.

At the heart of the new Europe

Austria lies in the middle of a rapidly growing automotive region. 10 car manufacturing facilities are located within a radius of 300 kilometers of Vienna. About three million cars are produced on assembly lines in Central and Eastern Europe. More than 1,000 international companies – in the automotive sector such as Magna, Renault or Volvo – run their Eastern European operations from their base in Austria.