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North Rhine-Westphalia’s minister for economic affairs, Thoben, visits Oberbruch Industrial Park
 North Rhine-Westphalia’s Minister for Economic Affairs, Christa Thoben, found out for herself at a meeting with businessmen at Nuon in Heinsberg that Oberbruch Industrial Park’s answer to international location competition was good ideas. She visited the industrial park in April and assured those present, "We are looking forward to your good ideas and will give them positive support." This meant that the minister promised that the state of NRW would bear in mind opportunities for the establishment of industry in Oberbruch when advertising NRW as a business location. Business development, she said, was being repositioned to push forward the marketing of NRW as an industrial location and the acquisition of investors. The minister also took careful note of the suggestion to focus more strongly on the USA when advertising industrial locations.
The minister was accompanied by Ellen Dörr, also from the Ministry for Economic Affairs, Small and Medium Enterprises and Energy of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, Leo Dautzenberg, member of the Federal German Parliament, Bernd Krückel, member of the State Parliament, area executive Stefan Pusch and Mayor Josef Offergeld.
Taking part in the business discussions for Nuon was Ton Doesburg, managing director of Nuon Germany and Dutch Senator, Jakob Wöllenweber, managing director of NUON Energie und Service, Frank Obernitz, managing director of NUON IP Heinsberg, Nico Pleeging, director of acquisition at NUON Energie und Service, and Petronella Gerards, acquisition industrial establishment, also of NUON Energie und Service. Other participants in the series of talks were Hans-Dieter Gölden, managing director of Toho Tenax Europe GmbH, Toho Tenax Europe plant manager Fred Horst, Pawel Smoczynski, managing director of KUAG ELANA GmbH, and Albert Giesen, also of KUAG ELANA.
At the start of her visit the Minister went to see the free space in Oberbruch Industrial Park which has been opened up with the aid of the state. After the official welcome Jakob Wöllenweber described the changes undergone by Oberbruch Industrial Park, from the once uniform Akzo Nobel site to the open industrial park of today with its emphasis on chemical processing, plastics and new materials.
Hans-Dieter Gölden presented Toho Tenax Europe, Europe’s largest carbon fibre manufacturer. The company, part of the Japanese Teijin Group, is investing 40 million euros in the construction of a further production line and is thus doubling its production capacity at the location. Hans-Dieter Gölden described the many different uses of the modern high-performance fibre, which, amongst other things, is being used in the Airbus 380.
Albert Giesen pointed out new prospects for a polyester manufacturer in a difficult textile environment. KUAG ELANA is part of the Polish Boryszew Group. By the takeover of the polyester manufacturer at Oberbruch location the Polish investor set a trend towards economic further development through international collaboration.
NUON IP Heinsberg’s managing director, Frank Obernitz, explained the regional establishment of the energy company Nuon, citing as examples Oberbruch Industrial Park in Heinsberg, the Niederrau Industrial Park in Düren and the regional power supply.
The business talks focused on the opportunities and risks of Oberbruch Industrial Park, the economic conditions for companies established at the location and the industrial park as well as current projects for new establishments. Location security through expansion was the concept by which Nuon in collaboration with the city of Heinsberg and with the support of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the EU realised the project for developing the free space. Jakob Wöllenweber pointed out to the minister the efforts made jointly by the location and the city to win new companies for the industrial park.
Thanks to worldwide marketing operations the industrial park has positioned itself as an attractive production location beyond the country’s borders. Contact has been established with dialogue partners in Japan, Israel, Australia and the USA. The location has started a major initiative to create prospects for the future. The operator Nuon has also invested 17 mill. euros in a new power plant at the location to increase the attractiveness of the industrial park and to optimise security of supply, economic efficiency and environmental friendliness. In the past few years alone Nuon has invested 70 mill. euros in the Heinsberg and Düren areas.
The present position in Oberbruch Industrial Park was intensified and worsened by the situation of the viscose manufacturer ENKA. ENKA’s announcement that it was moving its entire production from the Oberbruch location to China was received by Nuon as a further major challenge to hold the course it had successfully followed so far. "To master the situation for the good of the location and to ensure that companies can continue to compete in the global market we need political support" was managing director Jakob Wöllenweber’s urgent appeal to the minister.
20.04.2006 |
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"We shall give good ideas positive support"
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