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Autoliv to Close Four More Plants

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  Published in House and Home on Monday, December 21st 2009 at 5:20 GMT by Market Wire
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STOCKHOLM--([ BUSINESS WIRE ])--Regulatory News:

"By consolidating our steering wheel operations in North America we will also create one world-class vertically integrated steering wheel facility"

Autoliv Inc. (STO:ALIVSDB)(NYSE:ALV) – the global leader in automotive safety systems – today announced the closure of an additional four plants as a part of its ongoing action program.

To consolidate and to adapt its production capacity to the current demand, Autoliv has decided to close plants in France, Germany, Mexico and Tunisia.

Autoliv has started to transfer the steering wheel assembly operations from its Querétaro, Mexico location to the company's recently acquired steering wheel manufacturing facility in Matamoros, Mexico. This transition will take place over the coming months, allowing Autoliv to optimize its steering wheel business by vertically integrating armature manufacturing, molding, leather wrapping, final assembly and testing into one facility. Employees will be offered opportunities to transfer to either the Matamoros facility or one of the other two Querétaro facilities, where labor requirements are rising to meet increased demand. Between existing Querétaro facilities, Autoliv currently employs over 500 temporary workers.

In January 2009, Autoliv acquired most of the assets in distressed French steel stamping supplier NPC to secure deliveries. Due to low demand and, at least partly, new technologies, this facility will be closed early next year. Approximately 140 associates will be affected by this closure.

To further consolidate its seatbelt operations, Autoliv's seatbelt assembly plant in Tunisia will be closed and most of the production transferred to Autoliv Turkey. Approximately 650 associates will be affected by this consolidation.

Autoliv's steering wheel logistics center in Germany will become redundant as a result of further optimization of logistic routes from the production facilities. Approximately 32 associates will be affected by this productivity improvement.

"This is another important but difficult step in our action plan. In the highly competitive automotive industry we have to continuously improve our competitiveness and adapt the capacity to the actual demand," said Jan Carlson, President and CEO of Autoliv Inc. "By consolidating our steering wheel operations in North America we will also create one world-class vertically integrated steering wheel facility,"

"We will work closely with various community, union and government agencies to support employees impacted by these changes", he added.

About Autoliv

Autoliv Inc., the worldwide leader in automotive safety systems, develops and manufactures automotive safety systems for all major automotive manufacturers in the world. Together with its joint ventures, Autoliv has 80 facilities with approximately 36,000 employees in 28 vehicle-producing countries. In addition, the Company has technical centers in eleven countries around the world, with 21 test tracks, more than any other automotive safety supplier. Sales in 2008 amounted to US $6.5 billion. The Company's shares are listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: ALV) and its Swedish Depository Receipts on the OMX Nordic Exchange in Stockholm (ALIV sdb). For more information about Autoliv, please visit our company website at [ www.autoliv.com ].

Safe Harbor Statement

This release contains statements that are not historical facts but rather forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA). All such statements are based upon our current expectations and various assumptions, and apply only as of the date of this report. Our expectations and beliefs are expressed in good faith and we believe there is a reasonable basis for them. However, there can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will materialize or prove to be correct. Because such statements involve risks and uncertainties, the outcome could differ materially from those set out in the statements. For a summary of such risk factors, please refer to our latest 10-K and 10-Q filed with the SEC. Except for our ongoing obligation to disclose information under law, we undertake no obligation to update publicly any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information or future events. For any forward-looking statements contained in this or any other document, we claim the protection of the safe harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the PSLRA.

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