Nissan-Renault to Tie up with Russian Automaker

TOKYO, KOMPAS.com - The Nissan-Renault alliance and Russia’s top automaker Avtovaz, maker of Lada cars, will jointly produce subcompact cars at a plant in Russia from 2012, a Japanese newspaper reported Friday. With the 400 million euro (500 million dollar) investment, they will produce 300,000 vehicles a year at AvtoVAZ’s Tolyatti plant, Avtovaz president Igor Komarov told the business daily Nikkei.

Partners Nissan of Japan and Renault of France will shoulder 300 million euros of the total investment, the report said. Starting from September 2012, Nissan will make 75,000 vehicles a year, with Renault due to roll out 150,000 vehicles annually from March 2013, while state-run AvtoVAZ will produce 75,000 Lada vehicles a year.

The three will market the subcompacts under their own brands, according to the report. Imports make up nearly half of Russia’s auto market, but the three automakers want to lift their combined share to 40 percent from 33 percent last year. An official at Nissan headquarters declined to comment on the report.