Volvo's new European EV plant will use Tesla-style Giga Press

MILAN -- Idra, an Italian-based aluminum casting machine maker, has won a contract with Volvo Cars to install two of its largest presses at the automaker's new EV plant in eastern Europe.

The contract is for two 9,000 ton Giga Press machines, Idra said. The machines are the size of a small house or a tennis court. Idra did not disclose the value of the contract.

Volvo is building a $1.25 billion factory in Kosice, Slovakia, capable of making 250,000 electric vehicles a year. Series production of the automaker's next-generation EVs is scheduled to start in 2026.

Idra is a Tesla supplier and has recently added Ford and Hyundai to its customer base as more automakers explore this manufacturing technique. Idra is owned by China's LK Industries.

Tesla has pioneered the use of massive casting machines, known as Giga Presses, to make large single pieces of vehicle underbodies, streamline production and reduce the work even of robots.

Front and rear underbodies cast by the presses are combined with battery packs to form a three-piece chassis for battery-electric vehicles.