The leadership at Volkswagen has decided to extend the suspension of car production at the GAZ Group facility until September, a decision reported by NN.ru based on internal company sources. The extended halt means the assembly line remains idle through late summer, with payroll continuing at roughly two-thirds of workers’ regular wages according to the same source.
This marks a continuation of Volkswagen’s earlier decision to pause car manufacturing in Russia and to limit vehicle imports into the country from March 3 onward. The GAZ Group plant in Nizhny Novgorod has been manufacturing Volkswagen Taos, Skoda Kodiaq, Karoq, and Octavia on a full production cycle, and the ongoing shutdown has a direct impact on local employment and regional output.
Industry observers note that the pause aligns with broader geopolitical and economic developments affecting the Russian automobile market. In 2021, Volkswagen sold 86.1 thousand cars in Russia, a drop of 14 percent compared with the previous year. Skoda registrations also declined, with 90.4 thousand units sold in Russia, down 4 percent from the prior period. These figures illustrate a slower market pace that has coincided with a shift in supply chains and manufacturing decisions across the region.
In related industry news, BelAZ has announced plans to replace imported engines for its mining dump trucks with Russian-made units produced by Ural Diesel Engine Plant in Yekaterinburg. The move reflects a broader push toward domestic sourcing and localization of key components within Russia’s heavy vehicle sector.