BRATISLAVA - Chinese investor FLAMEshoes opened a new plant on Tuesday that produces leisure and beach shoes made of EVA (ethylene vinyl acetate) in the village of Kruzlov in eastern Slovakia.

The grand opening was attended by Kruzlov mayor Jozef Kmec, Slovak Economy Minister Vazil Hudak and Chinese Ambassador to Slovakia Pan Weifang.

"The state has been very helpful in this investment because we see China as an important country that we want to attract to Slovakia as an investor," said Hudak.

"We provided investment aid of about 4.5 million euros (about $5 million) to the total scale of investment of about 14 million euro," stressed Hudak, adding that several Chinese companies are interested investing in Slovakia.

According to FLAMEshoes CEO Marek Jajko, there are already 100 employees in the company and 50 more are to be taken on in the months ahead. The total number of jobs is to reach 200.

"At the moment, one production line produces 3,000 pairs of shoes daily, which isn't sufficient to meet demand. The products are exported to countries like Poland, the Czech Republic, Germany, Croatia, Austria and Hungary, but they can also be purchased in Slovakia," emphasized Jajko.