In the end, the government preferred the German concern Volkswagen to the offer of the French Renault. Now, Škoda Auto from Mladá Boleslav is the driving force behind Czech exports and has long been one of the most efficient Czech industrial companies.
In communist Czechoslovakia, the Škoda carmaker produced passenger cars, which were widely used in most of the then satellites of the Soviet Union. However, the popularity of obsolete cars was mainly due to the absence of competition in the closed world of the then Soviet empire.
After the fall of the communist regime, it was clear that in an open economy, the company had little chance of success, even though at that time it was already producing a new model of the more modern Favorit concept. Therefore, in 1990, the government began looking for a strong foreign partner for the carmaker. In addition to the amount of investment, one of the decisive conditions for privatization was the maintenance of the traditional Škoda brand.
–
–
In August 1990, VW and the French-Swedish consortium Renault / Volvo selected the 24 possible and from 12 possible partners. In December 1990, on the recommendation of the Economic Council, the government opted for a variant of cooperation with Volkswagen.
At that time, the decision was very sensitively perceived by the public and aroused a number of dissenting reactions and a wave of emotions. At that time, there were various fears in the country about an economically strong western neighbor, and especially among the older generation, memories of the war and the German occupation of Czechoslovakia also played a role. The view was also widespread that Western capital enters Czech companies in order to close them and thus get rid of competition.
The government decided for VW mainly thanks to the promised investments. In March 1991, when the representatives of the Czech government and the companies Škoda and VW signed an agreement on the establishment of a joint automobile joint-stock company, the group committed itself to billions in investments, including the construction of a new motor plant. It is said that VW significantly influenced the decision to buy the Mladá Boleslav company, in addition to the potential of the newly opened markets, also the successful Favorit model.
–
–
Within the Group, Škoda quickly modernized and began to shed the unflattering reputation it had, especially in Western European markets. The first result of Škoda’s merger with VW was the Škoda Felicia, followed by the Octavia, Fabia and Superby, whose names, with the exception of the Fabia, refer to successful models of the past. In 1998 the company changed its name to Škoda Auto, as and in 2000 VW became the 100% owner of the company.
The company now produces nine model lines, namely the Octavia, Fabia, Citigo iV, Superb, Scala, Kamiq, Karoq, Kodiaq and the new electric SUV Enyaq iV, and is also a major manufacturer of engines and gearboxes within the group.
Volkswagen has invested considerable sums in the start-up of Škoda Auto, and the company has earned or borrowed other necessary capital for investments in development. The carmaker is also supported by the Czech state in the form of investment incentives. Incentives played a role, for example, in the decision to build the promised motor plant, which Volkswagen wanted to abandon in the mid-1990s during the economic recession (many commentators then warned of losing the brand identity), or in expanding the plant in Kvasiny. The expansion of the carmaker has also helped the development or creation of many supplier companies that provide a significant part of jobs in the industry.
–
–
In the Czech Republic, Škoda Auto operates three production plants – in Mladá Boleslav, Kvasiny and Vrchlabí. It also produces in China, Russia, Slovakia, Algeria and India, mostly through group partnerships, as well as in Ukraine and Kazakhstan in cooperation with local partners. The company employs about 39 thousand people, of which about 34 thousand in the Czech Republic.
– .
