Japan Tobacco International (JTI) will invest €60 million ($70.43 million) to upgrade the production capacities of its factory in Romania, reports SeeNews.
The investment program will be deployed over the next three years, increasing the volume of JTI cigarettes manufactured in Romania.
The factory located in Bucharest’s Pipera industrial area is expected to play a key role in JTI’s sourcing to the EU markets.
“JTI Manufacturing will be provided with cutting-edge equipment in terms of technology and production standards,” JTI Romania factory lead Jamie Dunlop said.
Romania is the third-largest cigarette manufacturer in Europe after Germany and Poland. At present, some 70 percent of JTI Manufacturing Romania’s production is exported to some 50 countries.
According to the National Institute of Statistics, in 2020, exports totaled over €1.3 billion.
JTI Manufacturing will be provided with cutting-edge equipment in terms of technology and production standards.
Currently, JTI employs more than 1,200 people in Romania, including 500 at the Bucharest factory.
The company’s two entities in Romania—manufacturing and trading—paid over RON4.77 billion ($1.14 billion) in excise, VAT and other taxes, duties and contributions to the Romanian state in 2020, up 12 percent from the previous year.
JTI started operating in Romania in 1993 as R.J. Reynolds International and was one of the first multinationals to invest in the local tobacco industry. The company has invested over €250 million in Romania to date.