Vienna  - Sony Corp plans to double production of flat-screen televisions in Slovakia to meet booming demand in Europe, the company said Monday.

Sony said it is expanding its Nitra, Slovakia, factory with the aim of making it the company's largest liquid crystal display (LCD) television plant worldwide, boosting the workforce from 2,300 to 3,500 this year.

Flat-screen TV production in Slovakia is slated to rise from 2 million sets in fiscal 2007 to 4 million sets this year as sales in many European countries grow by double digits, Sony said.

LCD television "holds the key for further growth of Sony's electronics business," Ryoji Chubachi, head of the company's electronics division, said in a statement.

Slovakia, a former East Bloc nation that joined the European Union in 2004, has attracted a rush of foreign investors in recent years, notably automakers.

Sony began producing flat-screen TVs in Slovakia in April 2006. (dpa)