In December 2016, the Volkswagen Group Rus and the GAZ Group celebrated the fifth anniversary of the two companies’ cooperation in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia.

The Volkswagen Group Rus and the GAZ Group signed their contract assembly agreement in Nizhny Novgorod in June, 2011, and some six months thereafter, in December of 2011, the SKD (semi-knocked-down incompletely disassembled kit) production of the SKODA Yeti was launched. The full-cycle production (CKD) of the SKODA Yeti, including welding, painting, and assembly, was launched in December 2012.

In 2013, the production of the Volkswagen Jetta and the SKODA Octavia was launched at the manufacturing site in Nizhniy Novgorod. In total, 170,000 vehicles were produced under the agreement between the Volkswagen Group Rus and the GAZ Group to the present day. The maximum production capacity of the regional enterprise is 132,000 vehicles per year. The total investment in the machinery, equipment, and infrastructure amounts to EUR300 million.

“The Volkswagen Group Rus successfully fulfils its long-term localization strategy and guarantees the reliability and the high quality of the vehicles produced. Thanks to the cooperation with the GAZ Group we have production flexibility for fulfilling market demand, as well as a professional team capable of delivering products that meet international standards,” said director general of the Volkswagen Group Rus Marcus Osegowitsch.

“170,000 vehicles is a great result of a five-year partnership with the Volkswagen Group Rus, and it proves the efficiency of our cooperation. The GAZ Group’s manufacturing platform and its skilled personnel ensure high product quality in full compliance with our partner’s strict requirements. We are continuing our fruitful cooperation with the Volkswagen Group Rus on current projects and we believe to have all the necessary resources for the implementation of new co-projects,” said Manfred Eibeck, the CEO of Russian Machines Corporation.