TAFE denies that it will employ 800 workers in Serbia - Engines for new IMT tractors to arrive from India

The production of new IMT tractors will begin in a year at the latest, and the key components, such as engines, will be shipped from India, whereas other components will be produced in Serbia, where tractors bearing the IMT brand will be assembled as well, Kamal Ajuha, Deputy Manager of the Indian company TAFE for the European market, told Tanjug.

He pointed out that it was not realistic for the entire production process to be carried out in Serbia, but that there were conditions for components such as hydraulics, gears, cabins, rims, rubbers and car batteries to be produced in the country, thereby increasing the share of Serbia in the production year after year.

– When Fiat arrived to Serbia, the local participation amounted to around 2-3%, and I`m sure it`s much higher now and it will be the same with TAFE tractors – Ahuja is convinced.

When asked how many workers and engineers are to be employed, Ahuja says that it`s hard to talk about the number, as the way tractors are produced, he says, has changed a lot.

– Modern factories feature high-tech machines and don`t have as many employees as before. The vertical model of production, in which everything, from the smallest to the largest component, is made at the factory, no longer exists. Nowadays, there`s much more cooperation with subcontractors and this is the way we operate in India as well. In any case, the number of employees will grow as the production increases – Ahuja says.

He points out, as Tanjug reports, that Serbia has the workforce for the production, which, he says, was one of the deciding factors for TAFE to decide to buy IMT.

As Beta reports, citing Insajder, Ahuja has denied that the company promised 800 new jobs in the letter of intent, as Minister of Agriculture Branislav Nedimovic announced.

– I certainly didn`t say that. But I don`t want to speak on behalf of Mr Nedimovic. For the sake of comparison, in our most modern factory in India, we produce 60,000 tractors with far fewer people than 800 – Ahudja said in his interview for the Insajder portal and added that, regarding jobs, it was important to take into account both direct employees and those employed indirectly through subcontractors.

IMT d.o.o. Beograd

IMT

TAFE

sale of IMT

Tafe

tractor

tractors

production of tractors

Tractors and Farm Equipment Limited

Kamal Ahuja

tractor components

production of tractor components