PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) is planning to build its first manufacturing
plant in Russia. PPG has signed an "investment agreement" with the administration of the
Kaluga Region, Russia, to build an automotive coatings and industrial
coatings plant about 70 kilometers southwest of Moscow. The plant will manufacture coatings for automotive and other industrial
customers. The facility, which will be fully owned by PPG, will employ
about 70 people and be located just north of the city of Kaluga in the
Vorsino Industrial Park, according to Bill Wulfsohn, PPG senior vice
president, coatings. "The Russian economy is booming and automotive production is growing
quickly. To best serve the market, we must have local manufacturing
capabilities," Wulfsohn said. Currently, seven new automotive assembly
plants are in the planning or construction phase in Russia and are
expected to come online within the next three years. "Our new plant will enable PPG to quickly respond with high quality
standards to meet global and Russian customers´ growing needs and
requirements," Wulfsohn said. The new PPG facility will be located
centrally in Russia, close to the new and existing automotive plants. The Kaluga authorities "are particularly helpful for new investors," he
said, and have attracted foreign investment from leading international
companies such as VW, PSA, Volvo Truck, Samsung, John Deere, L´Oréal
and Nestlé. About PPG Pittsburgh-based PPG is a global supplier of paints, coatings
chemicals, optical products, specialty materials, glass and fiber glass.
The company has more than 150 manufacturing facilities and equity
affiliates and operates in more than 60 countries. PPG´s
sales in 2007 were $11.2 billion. SigmaKalon, a worldwide coatings
producer based in Uithoorn, Netherlands, that PPG acquired Jan. 2, 2008
had 2007 sales of $2.9 billion. PPG shares are traded on the New York
Stock Exchange (symbol: PPG). For more information, visit www.ppg.com.
