Minister of Economy, Entrepreneurship and Tourism Stefan-Radu Oprea announced on Monday in Alba Iulia that talks are advanced for the implementation at one of the two Cugir armament plants of the Beretta project carried out with the Italian firearms manufacturer that signed in 2019 a memorandum with the Plopeni Mechanical Plant.
"The idea of bringing the Beretta project to Cugir is already in the works at the ministry, because we have been talking about it for too long. It started in 2018 or 2019 when the agreement was signed with the Plopeni Mechanical Plant, but that facility had a different activity. They don't produce weapons there, they don't produce pistols, rifles, assault rifles, they don't produce machine guns. Then the project was directed to Simian (Mehedinti County), in a greenfield area where nothing exists and nothing has been built. I think it is normal for this project to be implemented in Cugir. It has already been through various stages within the ministry, the internal approval part, mandating the General Shareholders Meeting to greenlight the project for Cugir, as it is normal," the Economy minister told a press conference organized at the Alba headquarters of the Social Democratic Party, agerpres reports.
Stefan-Radu Oprea mentioned that, as far as he remembers, when the memorandum with the Plopeni Mechanical Plant was signed, it was about starting the assembly part there and then gradually produce up to 80 percent of the components there.
"I think that if we take it to Cugir, we will be able to assimilate the respective components much faster because it fits the specific of that facility, the skills of the people who work in Cugir and their experience. Therefore I believe that a considerable part of the project can be carried out in Cugir," the minister concluded.
Boasting a tradition of over 200 years, the Cugir Mechanical Plant currently manufactures weapons of various calibers (12.7 mm, 14.5 mm, 5.56 mm), 9 mm automatic and semi-automatic pistols and accessories, being the only producer of NATO caliber 12.7 x 99 mm steel barrel weapons.