BERLIN -- Skoda said it might outsource some production to a contract manufacturer as the automaker looks to respond to booming demand.
Demand for its new Kodiaq and Karoq SUVs could lead production at Skoda to surge to 2 million cars by about 2025 from 1.2 million currently, the automaker has said.
Skoda is already grappling with stretched capacity at its Czech plants.
"There is a wide range of options to cover order peaks," Skoda said on Monday, adding that taking advantage of unused capacity in the multi-brand parent Volkswagen Group will not do the trick.
"For that reason we keep looking into alternatives that also include possible contract manufacturing," Skoda said. "Demand is exceeding our production capacities also in 2018."
In March company sources said Skoda was looking at ways to boost production, including building a factory outside of its Czech home.
Major automakers including Germany's big three BMW, Daimler and VW routinely use contract manufacturers such as Magna Steyr in Austria or Valmet Automotive in Finland to outsource production, earning them greater flexibility while saving investments in their own facilities and resources.
Valmet is hiring up to 1,000 new staff this year to help build the Mercedes GLC SUV and the new A-class compact.
VW Group's labor boss Bernd Osterloh last week said shifting some production to Germany by 2019 will not solve bottlenecks at Skoda, which has passed Audi to become the second-most profitable unit at VW Group after sports-car brand Porsche.
Osterloh said a decision on how to boost Skoda's output will likely be reached by November when VW's supervisory board, of which he is a key member, is due to ratify the German group's rolling budget on capacity, technology and equipment.
