The MAHLE Electric Drive Slovenia company, which is a part of the German group MAHLE and employs about 1,800 people in Slovenia, will reduce the number of employees in that country by 170 this year. As the company management explained, they are optimising production and moving the starter production program to Bosnia and Herzegovina, to the factory in Aleksandrovac near Banja Luka, according to BiznisInfo.ba.

MAHLE Electric Drives Slovenia is the former Letrika company, which has been operating as a part of the German MAHLE group since 2014. The company has previously adjusted production in Slovenia, the number of employees has already been reduced in 2020. Similar to MAHLE Electric Drives Slovenia, other companies are moving “unprofitable” production to Bosnia and Herzegovina, according to Slovenian media.

MAHLE Electric Drives Slovenia is increasingly focusing on the products for electric mobility, such as motors for electric vehicles.

“We have developed a product that competes on the world's largest market. Another nomination would be a great victory, not only for the location in Šempetr near Gorica, but also for the region and the whole of Slovenia,” said Uros Rutar from the Šempetr company in an interview for Delo, Slovenian media outlet.

They plan further growth in that area, but in Slovenia they are limited by space and employees.

“Our biggest customer is the tractor industry. We are very successful in industrial work. If you buy a European or North American tractor today, there is an 85 percent probability that the two key products will be manufactured here,” added Rutar.

BiznisInfo.ba previously wrote that the MAHLE company built a large factory in Aleksandrovac. The works were brought to an end a few months ago. This will be one of the largest production facilities in the auto industry in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The surface of the facility is an impressive 26,040 square meters and it contains modern production infrastructure and technologically advanced resources.