AUTOMOTIVE parts manufacturer NSK is set to create more than 50 jobs thanks to an £11.1m expansion plan.

The company plans to introduce two new production lines at its facility on the South West Industrial Estate in Peterlee, east Durham, to supply bearings for front axles of vehicles for the VW Group.

The DTI is supporting the project with a £1.1m Regional Selective Assistance grant.

Trade and Industry secretary Patricia Hewitt, said: "This is great news for the region and for Peterlee. The investment will not only safeguard the jobs already at the Peterlee facility, but will also create 52 new jobs.

"The DTI grant has enabled this North-East company to meet a new international contract and retain and increase the number of high quality jobs, which otherwise would have gone to Poland."

NSK manufacturing director, John Potts, added: "The assistance we have received from the DTI gives us a platform on which we intend to build.

"Our objective is to ensure that NSK is transformed into a sustainable automotive products manufacturing plant and becomes an automotive centre of excellence."

NSK is part of the Japanese-based NSK Group, a leading world manufacturer of bearings, automotive components, and precision machinery parts