A new assembly line for Airbus Helicopters' H215 utility aircraft is being built in Romania, the company announced.

The factory, for which ground was broken on Monday, will have about 107,000 square feet of work space. About 15 aircraft will be produced annually.

"The H215 is of strategic importance to Airbus Helicopters and will allow us to offer customers the best helicopter for the job, all with extremely competitive direct operating and maintenance costs," Guillaume Faury, chief executive officer of Airbus Helicopters said at a ceremony to lay the factory's cornerstone.

"This expanded partnership with Romania, an important EU and NATO member, will ensure that our legacy twin-engine heavy helicopters are more economical than ever on current and emerging markets."

The H215 is an evolution of the former AS332 C1e/L1e Super Puma of Eurocopter, now part of Airbus Helicopters. The utility aircraft features dual engines and has a cruise speed of more than 130 knots.

Airbus Helicopters said the aircraft will come off the final assembly line in a standard configuration and then be customized as needed.

The first H215 is expected to roll off the assembly line in 2017.