Atlas Copco to increase manufacturing capacity in Sweden

Stockholm, Sweden, May 3, 2005: Atlas Copco is to expand its facilities in Örebro, Sweden, for the manufacturing of mining and tunneling equipment. The company is to invest MSEK 40 (approx. MEUR 4.4) in a new plant for the assembly of loaders and mine trucks.

Björn Rosengren, Business Area Executive, Construction and Mining Technique, emphasizes that the move is a part of a long term strategy of Atlas Copco’s Underground Rock Excavation division. “We have a positive view of the future and this is another step in our plan to increase capacity,” he says. “It is also a timely development in view of the many new products that we have recently added to our range.” The investment is the latest in a series of moves to concentrate and expand the company’s construction and mining business in Örebro, including the transfer of the loader assembly facilities from Portland, Oregon, the United States in 2003. The new facility is expected to lead to increased employment in the Örebro area, which is now widely regarded as a world center for rock drilling technology. Construction will begin in May and the facilities are scheduled to be fully operational early 2006.