AvtoVAZ’s inclusion in US sanctions lists and next due to problems with bank payments and separation of suppliers, the company refuses to discuss the future fate of the project to unify the Lada X-Cross 5 crossovers with the Chinese FAW Bestune T77 with Lada badges.
The solemn ceremony of the start of production of Lada X-Cross 5 was held in St. It was timed to coincide with the opening of the International Economic Forum in St. Petersburg. took place In the summer of 2023. The meeting was attended by the head of the Ministry of Industry and Trade Denis Manturov, AvtoVAZ president Maxim Sokolov and St. Petersburg Governor Alexander Beglov attended. But so far the car has not been officially launched, prices and configurations have not been announced, and on Lada’s official website the crossover is mentioned in a single slide that says “Coming soon.”
The official representative of AvtoVAZ avoided a direct answer to socialbites.ca’s question about the fate of the Lada X-Cross 5 project; The press service of the plant also did not deny media reports about the possible interruption of this project. The company also declined to comment on its collaborations with other car brands.
“We do not confirm any of the rumors that we are collaborating with anyone in particular. These are erroneous guesses.
Moreover, we reject any questions on this issue in principle and do not comment on it,” AvtoVAZ official representative Sergei Ilyinsky told socialbites.ca.
AvtoVAZ may start producing Chery cars as an alternative to FAW cars.
This was reported yesterday by the Avtograd news public page on the VKontakte social network, which published insider news from AvtoVAZ. The test pass of the Chery Tiggo 7 Pro was as follows: photographed On the territory of the AvtoVAZ engineering center in Tolyatti.
Sergei Tsyganov, the author of the Telegram channel “Russian Automobile”, told socialbites.ca, citing his sources at the plant, that Chery cars are in St. Petersburg. He said that preparations for its production at the Lada factory in St. Petersburg are already in the final stages.
“This production has actually already been established. I am sure that the production of Chery Tiggo 7 Pro Max will start there and with body welding.
People are working on welding the hull and localizing some equipment, everything is serious there. Here we need to talk not about an assumption, but about an almost completed project,” Tsyganov told socialbites.ca.
AvtoVAZ increasingly needs this project, but Chery is interested in it from the point of view of its strategy for presence in the Russian market, taking into account increasingly stringent requirements for localizing production, increasing the fee for recycling and using it as a preservative. Tsyganov believes that this is a tool for those interested in direct imports.
The interlocutor added that AvtoVAZ will most likely not officially announce the closure of the project with FAW, but will try to quietly nullify it.
“Openly admitting failures is not the style of today’s policy towards foreign partners. Avoiding an answer and being suggestive are typical tactics,” Tsyganov concluded.
Chery’s Russian representative office sells its cars in St. He neither confirmed nor denied the possibility of joint production with AvtoVAZ in St. Petersburg, leaving socialbites.ca’s questions without comment. FAW representatives did not respond to the publication’s request.
The official representative of AvtoVAZ also did not comment on the possibility of starting production of Chery at the former Nissan plant.
“We do not comment on speculation regarding any partner. “Wait for official announcements at the right time.”
– he remarked.
It is clear that AvtoVAZ’s partnership with FAW did not work out and forced Chery to move to St. Petersburg. There is a technical opportunity to produce it at the factory in St. Petersburg, but the independent automotive industry believes that such a project is more interesting for AvtoVAZ than for the Chinese company. consultant Sergei Burgazliev.
“AvtoVAZ’s Nissan plant needs to be filled with something. This is one of the strategic assets that AvtoVAZ owns essentially for free. If Chery is produced there, a full-fledged partnership cannot be expected. Chery communicates with everyone, negotiates the most attractive conditions for itself, and this is a very strategically correct approach,” Burgazliev explains to socialbites.ca.
We can assume that at the moment the partnership between AvtoVAZ and FAW has not been realized. AvtoVAZ’s St. He added that he would definitely look for a new partner to produce cars at the St. Petersburg plant.
“Another option is to sell this plant to Chery, but this can only be done at a very large discount,” Burgazliev said.
Igor Morzharetto, partner of the analytical agency Autostat, said that the FAW Bestune T77 cars were delivered to St. Petersburg. He admits that there are obvious problems with the project to assemble it in St. Petersburg under the name Lada X-Cross 5.
“There are definitely problems in this project. A certain number of cars have been assembled, but for some reasons they are not sold. The model is available free of charge on the AvtoVAZ website. At the same time, AvtoVAZ is discussing with other potential partners,” notes Morzharetto in an interview with socialbites.ca.
According to him, which Chinese automaker is currently operating in St. It is extremely difficult to predict who could replace FAW to produce cars in St. Petersburg. At the same time, the number of automobile brands in China is very large and their ownership structures are quite complex.
“Chinese auto companies have complex ownership structures and many subsidiary brands. The same Chery is available in the Russian market not only as Chery but also with its sub-brands.
There are other companies that came here independently but are also directly linked to Chery. For example Jetour and Kaiyi”,
– Reminds me of Morzharetto.
Experts state that the latest sanctions package has hit our partners in China hard.