TRW Automotive to close its wheel factory in Northern Romania

US auto parts producer TRW Automotive will close its wheel factory in Baia Mare, Nothern Romania.

The factory’s 200 employees will remain unemployed, according to the local labor authority.

The factory opened five years ago and produced steering wheels for Ford, Volkswagen and Fiat, among others, according to Romania Insider. The group had to close the factory after losing some export contracts, according to the local authorities.

TRW has been operating in Romania for 14 years and also owns factories in Marghita (Bihor county), Oravita (Caras-Severin county) and Lupeni (Hunedoara county), where it also produces airbags. The company’s business in Romania totaled over 260 million Euro and the number of employees amounted to almost 3,000 in 2016.

TRW is part of German group ZF Friedrichshafen, which also has two factories in Romania, in Timisoara and Roman.