The new plant will be built in Września, 30 miles east of Poznań. The building site covers an area of 220 hectares, which is equivalent to the size of more than 300 football fields.

The first Volkswagen Crafter vehicles will be delivered starting the second half of 2016. The new plant is planning to achieve an annual production capacity of up to 100,000 vehicles.

A modern paint shop will be built on the plant site as well as halls for body assembly, vehicle assembly and a supplier park with logistics areas.

Up to 3,000 employees will work in the new facility. Volkswagen's investment will also help automotive suppliers create new jobs. At present, 40 per cent of parts supplied to the Volkswagen plant in Poznań are from Polish companies.

‘Today, we produce around 170,000 vehicles with almost 7,000 workers, not only for Poland but for the whole of Europe and beyond,’ said Dr Eckhard Scholz, chairman of the Board of Management of the Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles Brand. ‘This makes Volkswagen Poznań the second pillar for the brand – after the main assembly plant in Hannover. In future, this pillar will provide more support and therefore the foundation stone is laid today in the literal sense of the word. By a new plant and by a new vehicle.’