Magna to Assembly Chryslers
The Russian Ministry of Economic Development will sign an agreement with Magna, the Canadian company co-owned by OAO Russian Machines, this week. Its plant, which will be the last foreign automotive assembly plant allowed to open in Russia, will be built in Nizhny Novgorod Region and Chrysler models will be its main product. The plant will have a capacity of 100,000-150,000 vehicles with the possibility of expansion to twice that number.
Nizhny Novgorod Minister of Investment Policy Dmitry Svatkovsky said that Magna will be given the choice of several building sites in the region. It should make a decision on them by the end of the month and construction may begin my early next year. Russian Machines may act as co-investor with Magna, although the Russian company emphasizes that no final decision has been made yet. Magna signed a memorandum with the Ministry of Economic Development in the autumn of 2007. Its plant will be the last one foreigners build in Russia because the ministry has stopped signing agreements due to WTO requirements. Magna is already a major supplier of parts for Chrysler. In the first quarter of the year, Chrysler occupied 38th place in Russia by sales, with just 406 cars sold.
The Magna plant will be able to produce parts for the new Volga Siber sedan, a GAZ car that will be created based on the Chrysler Sebring.
www.kommersant.com
All the Article in Russian as of June 04, 2008
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