Carmakers want ministry to prolong easy terms for car assembly

MOSCOW, Jan 31 (PRIME) -- Russian carmakers AvtoVAZ, Kamaz, and Sollers, have asked the Industry and Trade Ministry to prolong easy regulations for car assembly until mid-2024, the car companies said in letters to the ministry seen by PRIME on Tuesday.

The government simplified regulations for the cars produced in Russia from March 2022 through February 1, 2023, and allowed the companies to produce cars without the ABS and ESP systems and without an automated activation unit of the ERA-Glonass system. It also allowed the companies to produce cars with engines with lower environmental class of up to Euro-0.

“Main work on the return of these options to the Lada line will be finished during 2023, and the Russian producers will need additional time for tuning of the production lines and supplies in the first half of 2024 for several other positions,” AvtoVAZ said in a letter to Deputy Minister Albert Karimov, asking him to prolong the easing until July 1, 2024.

Kamaz said in its letter that consistency of alternative supplies was lacking, and that the requirement to raise the environmental class of engines to Euro-5 may lead to suspension of production lines if the flow of component parts from alternative suppliers becomes disrupted. Complete compliance with the technical regulations of the Customs Union could be achieved no earlier than in April–June 2024, the company said.

Sollers also said that it was actively working on replacing suppliers of component parts, and in some cases, it had to redesign elements of its cars almost from scratch because of the change in suppliers. It also needs to test and adjust the new parts in cars. “Because of that, we ask you to prolong the special order until July 1, 2024,” Sollers said in its letter to Karimov.

A ministry representative said that it had received the letters and planned to consider the requests swiftly.

A source told PRIME earlier that car producer GAZ Group also asked the government to prolong the easing of regulations.

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