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The President Of Catalan Government (Generalitat) Visits Seat Factory


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MARTORELL, Spain – February 26, 2009: The Rt. Hon. José Montilla, President of the Catalan government (Generalitat), together with the Catalan government’s Minister for Universities and Business, Josep Huguet, visited the SEAT factory in Martorell today to get hands-on knowledge of the car manufacturer’s production processes, as well as company projects currently in the pipeline.

During the visit the group, also comprising mayors from the three municipalities where the company facilities are located, was given a guided tour of the modern production processes used to manufacture the SEAT Exeo- the brand’s latest addition - by SEAT Chairman Erich Schmitt.

Additionally, the President of the Generalitat was given a glimpse of the Exeo’s performance as a passenger in a car driven by SEAT’s Chairman, who drove one off the assembly line. Sales of the Exeo are scheduled to start in Spain on 2nd March next.

Erich Schmitt highlighted the substantial investments of “more than 2,400 million euros that have been realized by the company over the past five years, partly of course being directed to the Exeo model. Just with the new Exeo we guarantee approximately 4,000 direct and indirect jobs”.

During the visit, the SEAT Chairman unveiled an Exeo equipped with state-of-the-art technology as regards police safety, which he presented to the President of the Generalitat as a patrol car for the Catalan police, the Mossos d’Esquadra.

This is not the first time that SEAT models have been chosen as official vehicles in different public bodies. More than 1,000 SEAT Alteas have formed part of the Mossos d’Esquadra car fleet since 2005, while another 200 Toledos currently patrol Barcelona emblazoned with the shield of the metropolitan police – the Guardia Urbana.

The visit paid by the Rt. Hon. José Montilla is yet another example of the good relations existing between SEAT and the Generalitat. Links have gone from strength to strength over the more than 50 years since the brand put down roots in Catalonia.