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Antonio Cobo, Plant Manager Zaragoza, in an interview.
Four from one factory: The Opel Corsa, Mokka X and Crossland X as well as the Citroën C3 Aircross are manufactured in Zaragoza (from left).
Proud figures: since 1982, the factory in Zaragoza has produced almost 13 million vehicles and more than 3.5 million component sets.
The work Zaragoza
The next generation of the Opel / Vauxhall Corsa will be manufactured exclusively in Zaragoza from 2019, in addition to an electric version of the small car bestseller from 2020 run there from the tape. The Zaragoza factory has been building the Opel Corsa since 1982. Since then, the factory has produced nearly 13 million vehicles, including more than ten million units of the bestselling Corsa. Groupe PSA also manufactures the Opel Mokka X, Opel Crossland X and Citroën C3 Aircross models at this location. With this additional investment, Groupe PSA confirms its commitment to the site and strengthens the company’s leading position in Spain – with 876,672 vehicles produced in 2017.
Mr. Cobo, the plant in Zaragoza has successfully concluded talks with stakeholders to become more competitive. How do you judge the result? Antonio Cobo: The negotiations were not easy, but we had one common goal: a good future for our factory. I view the result as a responsible agreement between all parties who understand the importance of competitiveness. This was also necessary to support the PACE! Plan, because everyone has to do their part. All of us, management and trade unions, faced a great challenge in the talks. We had to appropriately assess and balance different interests.
Of course we all want a competitive work, but it is also important to consider the legitimate interests of our employees. The open dialogue and the spirit of maintaining social peace, one of the historical values of our work, have contributed to a good solution. Thanks to this balanced agreement, which will increase our competitiveness, the next-generation Opel Corsa will be produced exclusively at the Zaragoza factory from 2019, and from 2020 on, it will also be followed by an electric version, the technology of the future. This is undoubtedly an important step in the future of our site, marking the beginning of a new era.
“The open dialogue and the spirit of maintaining social peace, one of the historical values of our work, have contributed to a good solution.”
– Antonio Cobo – Manager Zaragoza
What are your next steps? Antonio Cobo: We support the PACE! Goals by implementing the Zaragoza Master Plan. This means we are improving in all areas: more competitive, more productive, more flexible and more efficient. So we will master the future challenges. We want to be the best in the industry. And of course, we will prepare our plant for new successful vehicle launches in 2019 and 2020. The daily focus is on supplying our customers with high quality and efficient cars. We know that every day we have to work hard and smart to do that.
How do you see the role of Zaragoza in the future? Antonio Cobo: We want to establish Zaragoza as a top plant within Opel and the Groupe PSA and contribute to the overall success of the company. We want to be a factory fully equipped to transition to new technologies, such as new products like the e-Corsa. And we will support all efforts to make Opel again the leading brand in Spain.
As of April 2018