The reindustrialisation of Hungary is progressing at a good pace and the opening of an electronic waste recycling centre in Karcag also demonstrates this, Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated on Tuesday at the opening event. The new 3.6 billion forint plant in Karcag will directly create 170 jobs, with a potential for an additional 400-500 jobs resulting from associated businesses in the future.
Karcag has a good reputation as a farming town, but agricultural areas are not viable anymore without industrial development, the Prime Minister pointed out, adding that more industrial parks need to be set up where industrial investments can be channelled.
Industrial production makes up 23 percent of the national economy in Hungary, more than the European Union’s average of 15 percent, which makes Hungary the third most industrialised country after Germany and the Czech Republic, Prime Minister Orbán stated.
Hungary has a good chance of competing to become Europe's most industrialised country within the next four years, he added. He emphasised that large international industrial companies are a must for the development of Hungarian industry, adding that "we are very pleased about such plants being opened".
He noted that new legislation on waste disposal has been passed, and selective waste collection is planned to be introduced throughout Hungary from 2015. Serious fines have been imposed for metal theft, he added.
Infogroup owner István Székely, whose company is part of a consortium that built the recycling plant, said capacity of the facility was an annual 18,000 tonnes of electronic waste and 4,000 tonnes of disused refrigerators.
The investors also won a 1.67 billion forint (EUR 5.3m) EU and state grant for the project.
(Prime Minister's Office)
