Autoliv builds new plant in Romania

Autoliv builds new plant in Romania (Stockholm, May 25, 1999) -- Autoliv Inc. (NYSE: ALV and SSE: ALIV), the worldwide leader in automotive safety systems, will build a new plant for its operations in Romania. The new production facility will both replace the existing plant and provide additional production capacity, especially for the rapidly expanding contract work Autoliv Romania S.A. does for Autoliv's companies in European high-cost countries. A 60,000 square meter site has been acquired near Brasov in Romania. The initial construction phase, which will start next month, encompasses a 3,000 square meter plant for seat belt and airbag assembly. This capital expenditure, which is calculated to amount to U.S. $1.5 million, will allow Autoliv to double its work force in Romania to more than 100 employees. Autoliv Romania S.A. is the only local producer of seat belts to Romania's car industry. The most important vehicle producer in the country is Dacia, which produces 100,000 light vehicles annually. The other vehicle manufacturer in Romania is Daewoo with current production of 35,000 light vehicles. -This new plant meets two of our strategy goals, explains Lars Westerberg, Autoliv's President and Chief Executive Officer. - It not only strengthens our globalization process, but it also improves our possibilities to move more production to low labor-cost countries, which is necessary in our very competitive industry, concludes Lars Westerberg. Autoliv's subsidiary in Romania was recently certified according to both QS- 9000, a quality management standard required by most vehicle manufacturers in the world, and VDA-Band 6.1, a similar standard developed by the German vehicle industry. Autoliv Inc. develops and manufactures automotive safety systems for all major automotive manu-facturers in the world. The company has 60 wholly-owned subsidiaries and joint ventures with more than 21,000 employees in 28 vehicle- producing countries. In addition, the company has eight tech-nical centers around the world, including 19 test tracks, more than any other automotive safety supplier. Sales in 1998 amounted to close to US $3.5 billion and net income US $188 million. The company's shares are listed on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE: ALV), its Swedish Depositary Receipts on the Stockholm Stock Exchange (SSE: ALIV) and its stock options on the Chicago Board Options Exchange (CBOE: ALV.) Inquiries: Lars Westerberg, Tel +46-8-58 72 06 20 Mats Ödman, Dir. Corp. Com., Tel. +46 (8) 58 72 06 23 or mob. +46(708) 32 09 33 Website: www.autoliv.com Autoliv Inc. Autoliv North America, Inc. Klarabergsviadukten 70, Sec. C 1320 Pacific Drive P. O. Box 703 81, SE-107 24 Stockholm, Sweden Auburn Hills, MI 48326- 1569, USA Tel +46 (8) 58 72 06 23, Fax +46 (8) 24 44 79 Tel +1 (248) 475-0409, Fax +1 (248) 475-9831 e-mail: mats.odman@autoliv.com e-mail: barry_murphy@autolivasp.com ------------------------------------------------------------ Please visit http://www.bit.se for further information The following files are available for download: http://www.bit.se/bitonline/1999/05/26/19990526BIT00160/bit0001.pdf http://www.bit.se/bitonline/1999/05/26/19990526BIT00160/bit0002.doc