Taipei, Dec. 9, 2009 (CENS)--AU Optronics Corp. (AUO), the largest thin film transistor-liquid crystal display (TFT-LCD) panel manufacturer in Taiwan, recently announced its establishment of the AU Optronics (Slovakia) s.r.o. in the Slovak Republic of European mainland, and plans to invest more than 191 million euro starting from 2010.

The panel manufacturer said that the Slovakia facility will be engaged in manufacturing, assembling, and selling large-sized LCD modules (LCMs), aiming to provide just-in-time services to customers in the region.

AUO said that the project would be one of the biggest investment projects in Slovak since the financial turmoil in 2008. AUO`s Chairman, K. Y. Lee, and Lubomir Jahnatek, Minister of Economy of the Slovak Republic, signed an investment agreement in a formal ceremony in the European nation. Both the Deputy Prime Minister of the Slovak, Dusan Caplovic and Representative of the Taipei Representative Office, Bratislava, Chen Chiun-ming, attended the signing ceremony, AUO said.

Lee noted during the signing ceremony that Europe is one of the major markets for LCD TV. AUO also regards Europe as the high-potential growth market for its green business. To provide clients direct and prompt support, strengthen global presence, and be closer to customers are the key considerations of this investment project, the panel maker explained.

In central Europe, Slovak joined the euro zone in 2009 and not only offers high quality and competitive human resources to enterprises, but also has stable economic development to drive the growth of gross domestic product (GDP).

AUO Slovakia`s new 200,000 square meter factory is in Trencin city. The production capacity will be increased according to demand and the initial product lines will focus on large-sized LCMs. Other affiliated companies within the AUO group may join the production site in the future, AUO said.

(by Quincy Liang)