Serbia may welcome a Chinese train manufacturing plant

Recently, Serbian President Aleksandar Vučić said that China is about to complete the feasibility analysis of building a train manufacturing plant in Serbia and is expected to make a decision soon. Vučić emphasized the importance of China in Serbia's export structure and revealed that the two sides are planning to establish an annual meeting mechanism between the two heads of state to strengthen the institutionalization and strategic coordination of bilateral cooperation.

President Vučić pointed out that this is a continuation of the cooperation between China and Serbia in the field of rail transit. He mentioned that as early as May 2024, during President Xi's visit to Cyprus, China proposed a number of site selection plans for factory construction. In recent years, Chinese companies have been extensively involved in the construction of railway infrastructure in Serbia, including the modernization and reconstruction project of the Novi Sad-Subotica border section of the Hungarian-Serbian Railway, which was jointly implemented by China Railway International and China Communications Construction Co., Ltd., with a total amount of 943 million euros.

In terms of rail transit equipment procurement, Serbia has also continued to introduce advanced trains from Chinese manufacturers. In October 2023, CRRC Changqing signed a contract with the Ministry of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure of Serbia for the supply of high-speed EMUs for the Hungarian-Serbian Railway. The high-speed EMU signed this time is an electric unit tailored for the Hungarian-Serbian Railway in accordance with the European railway interconnection technical specifications and European technical standards, as well as the specific needs of the Hungarian-Serbian Railway, which is also the first time that China's high-speed EMUs with a speed of more than 200 kilometers per hour have been exported to Europe.

In addition to rail transit and manufacturing, the two sides also mentioned the effectiveness of cooperation under the framework of the free trade agreement. Vučić pointed out that in 2024, the annual bilateral trade volume between China and Cyprus will increase by nearly 32% year-on-year. From 2013 to 2024, Serbia's exports to China increased from US$22 million to US$1.9 billion. Bilateral trade between China and Serbia has continued to grow, and China has been Serbia's largest importer, second largest trading partner and important source of direct investment for many years.

He also made a point of thanking the Chinese side for the fact that the Chinese-controlled Smederevo steel plant has not laid off workers despite continuous losses in recent years, and continues to pay wages above the industry average, stabilizing local employment and promoting economic development throughout the Danube Basin. Regarding other Chinese-funded enterprises, Vučić said that Zijin Mining has achieved stable profits, and Linglong Tire has also achieved profitability.

In order to implement the important consensus reached by the two heads of state, Vučić announced that a high-level Serbian economic delegation will soon visit China to promote the implementation of specific cooperation projects, and he himself will be invited to visit China in early September to further consolidate and deepen the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries.

Rail Transit Exhibition Booth Reservation

Rail Transit Exhibition Free registration for visit