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Company type | Incorporation |
---|---|
Industry | Automotive industry, contract manufacturing |
Founded | 1968Uusikaupunki, Finland | in
Headquarters | Uusikaupunki , Finland |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Pasi Rannus (CEO) |
Products | Manufacturing service provider to the automotive industry; passenger car contract manufacturing, supplier for development and manufacturing of battery systems as well as a supplier for roof and kinematic systems |
Services | Automotive contract manufacturing |
Revenue | €2.2 billion [1] (2023) |
31.3 (2023) | |
Owners | Pontos Group (38%), Tesi (38%), Contemporary Amperex Technology (28%) |
Number of employees | 3,700 [2] |
Website | www |
Valmet Automotive (formerly known as Saab-Valmet) is a Finnish vehicle contract manufacturer and supplier of battery, roof, and kinematic systems. [3]
Valmet Automotive has manufactured over 1.8 million vehicles from its headquarters in Uusikaupunki, Finland. The largest shareholders in Valmet Automotive Group are the Finnish state investment company Tesi and Pontos Group, each with a 38.46 percent stake. 23.08 percent is held by China's Contemporary Amperex Technology Limited (CATL).
Valmet Automotive has three business lines: Vehicle Manufacturing, EV Systems, and Roof & Kinematic Systems.
In vehicle manufacturing, Valmet Automotive customers include Mercedes-Benz, Porsche, Saab, Opel and Fisker. [4] [5] Valmet Automotive has produced electric vehicles since 2009. In July 2021, Valmet Automotive was selected to build long-range solar cars for the cancelled Lightyear 0. [6] Valmet Automotive also announced a manufacturing contract with Sono Motors for the cancelled Sion model in 2022.
In July 2012, Daimler AG and Valmet Automotive announced a manufacturing agreement Mercedes-Benz A-Class for the Uusikaupunki plant, in Finland. Production began in August 2013. A contract for the production of the Mercedes-Benz GLC-Class was announced in November 2015. The GLC production started in February 2017. [7] In March 2017, Valmet Automotive announced the manufacturing contract with Daimler AG for the next generation Mercedes-Benz compact cars. [8] While the production of the GLC ended in 2022, Valmet Automotive announced a manufacturing contract for the Mercedes-AMG GT 4-Door Coupé.
In the EV Systems business line, Valmet Automotive operates two battery pack production facilities in Salo, Finland, and in Uusikaupunki, Finland. [9] The battery plant in Salo, Finland, started a large-scale production of 48-volt systems in 2019, and the expansion to include production of high-voltage batteries was completed in the summer of 2021. The battery plant in Uusikaupunki was opened in September 2021; high-voltage batteries for electric vehicles are manufactured there under one roof with vehicle production. A third battery plant in Kirchardt, Germany, is under construction and will open in 2022. Valmet Automotive also has sites for battery testing and engineering in Bad Friedrichshall, Weihenbronn, Munich and Turku (Finland). [10]
In 2010, Valmet Automotive took over Karmann's roof business and continued operations at the Osnabrück, Germany, and Żary, Poland, sites. In 2016, it was decided to expand the Roof Systems business to include Kinematic Systems. Kinematic Systems comprises the development and production of spoiler systems to reduce fuel consumption and optimize the range of electrically powered vehicles. The product range also includes kinematic solutions for electric vehicles such as electric charging flaps. The customer reference list of the Roof & Kinematic Systems business line includes brands such as Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Mini (BMW Group), Bentley, McLaren Automotive and Porsche. [11]
Saab-Valmet was established in 1968 as a joint venture of Finnish Valmet and Swedish Saab-Scania. The automotive plant was placed in Uusikaupunki, Finland, and assembled only Saabs for the first eleven years. Between 1979 and 1985, Valmet also assembled Talbots; a total of 31,978 such cars were built in Finland. [12] Valmet were only really interested in building the compact Simca-Talbot Horizon, but the French company required Valmet to also assemble the larger (and slow selling) 1307 before they would license the Horizon. [13] Unlike Saabs, the Simca-Talbots were only meant for local consumption, although a clause in the contract allowed for the possibility of exports if parts made by the thirty local suppliers began to be exported to Talbot's main plants. Domestic parts content increased to thirty percent within a half year of manufacture commencing. [13]
In 1992, Valmet became the sole owner, and the company was renamed Valmet Automotive in 1995. From 1999 to 2010, the sole owner was Metso, after which both Finnish Industry Investment (Tesi) and Pontos Investments bought 34% of the company's shares. [14] On November 4, 2010, Valmet Automotive bought Karmann’s roof-component sections in Osnabrück, Germany, and Żary, Poland. [15] In January 2017, CATL became a 23.08% minority stakeholder in the company, [16] the other shareholders being Pontos and Tesi (Finnish Industry Investment).
The Saab 900 is a mid-sized automobile produced by Swedish manufacturer Saab from 1978 until 1998 in two generations: the first from 1978 to 1994, and the second from 1994 to 1998.
The Saab 9-3 is a compact executive car initially developed and manufactured by the Swedish automaker Saab.
The Saab 90 is a family car produced by Saab from September 1984 to 1987. It was manufactured at a facility in Uusikaupunki (Nystad), Finland, at that time owned by a joint venture with Finnish Valmet called Saab-Valmet. The 90 was a continuation of the Saab 99 and it was basically a Saab 99 from the B-pillar forward with the rear of a Saab 900 sedan. The 90, while easier to build than the 99, was still considerably more labour-intensive than the more modern 900.
Wilhelm Karmann GmbH, commonly known as Karmann, was a German automobile manufacturer and contract manufacturer based in Osnabrück, Germany. Founded by Wilhelm Karmann in 1901, the company specialised in various automotive roles, including design, production and assembly of components for a wide variety of automobile manufacturers, including Chrysler, Porsche, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen Group.
The Talbot Horizon is a compact hatchback designed by Chrysler Europe and produced from 1978 to 1987. It was sold under the Simca, Chrysler and Talbot nameplates. The successor to both the Simca 1100 and Hillman Avenger, the Horizon adopted a front-wheel drive, transverse-engine layout.
Uusikaupunki is a town and municipality of Finland. It is located in the Southwest Finland region, 71 kilometres (44 mi) northwest of Turku and 97 kilometres (60 mi) south of Pori. The municipality has a population of 14,938 and covers an area of 551.65 square kilometres (212.99 sq mi) of which 49.04 km2 (18.93 sq mi) is inland water. The population density is 29.68 inhabitants per square kilometre (76.9/sq mi).
The Simca 1307 is a large family car produced by Chrysler Europe and subsequently PSA Peugeot Citroën from 1975 to 1986. Codenamed 'C6' in development, the car was styled in the United Kingdom by Roy Axe and his team at Whitley, and the car was engineered by Simca at Poissy in France.
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The Mercedes-Benz A-Class is a subcompact car manufactured by Mercedes-Benz and marketed across three generations as a front-engine, front-wheel drive, five-passenger, five-door hatchback, with a three-door hatchback offered for the second generation.
Automobile was an American automobile magazine published by the Motor Trend Group. A group of former employees of Car and Driver led by David E. Davis founded Automobile in 1986 with support from Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation, using the credo No Boring Cars.Automobile distinguished itself as more of a lifestyle magazine than the other automotive publications, an editorial theme that Davis greatly expanded upon from his tenure as the editor of Car and Driver, though it was a sister publication to Motor Trend.
The Geneva International Motor Show was an annual auto show held in March in the Swiss city of Geneva.
Heuliez was a French carrosserie that worked as a production and design unit for various automakers. It specialized in producing short series for niche markets, such as convertibles or station-wagons.
The International Motor Show Germany or International Mobility Show Germany, in German known as the Internationale Automobil-Ausstellung, is one of the world's largest mobility trade fairs. It consists of two separate fairs, that subdivided in 1991. While the IAA Mobility displays passenger vehicles, motorcycles and bikes, the IAA Transportation specializes in commercial vehicles. Before the separation, the show was held solely at the Messe Frankfurt.
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Fisker Automotive was an American company. It produced the Fisker Karma, which was one of the world's first production luxury plug-in hybrid electric vehicles. The company was founded in 2007 by Henrik Fisker, a Danish automobile designer.
The Fisker Karma is a luxury plug-in range-extended electric sports sedan produced by Fisker Automotive between 2011 and 2012. The cars were manufactured at Valmet Automotive in Finland.
The Mercedes-Benz GLC is a compact luxury crossover SUV introduced in 2015 for the 2016 model year that replaced the GLK-Class. According to Mercedes-Benz, it is the SUV equivalent to the C-Class.
The 2010 Paris Motor Show took place from 2 October to 17 October 2010, in Paris expo Porte de Versailles.
Uusikaupunki Automobile Museum is a vehicle museum located next to the Valmet Automotive factory in Uusikaupunki, Southwest Finland. Its collections include about a hundred cars, a selection of mopeds, a few motorcycles and even two airplanes. The museum has three exhibition halls and is open all year round.