Ssangyong Motor has signed a deal with Russian holding company and partner Sollers to increase CKD kit exports to Russia over the next seven years. From an estimated total of 12,000 kits this year CKD, shipments will increase to 16,700 units next year and by 2017 the number of exports is expected to rise to 156,100.
The units will be moved to Sollers' far eastern factory in Vladivostok for assembly.
The increase in orders comes as Ssangyong prepares to launch production of the compact SUV/Korando C in July and is part of the effort to revive the SUV maker, now in a sale process under court-led restructuring. A preferred buyer for the business is expected by August.
Reuters reports that six bidders have been shortlisted in the early phase of the sale, which is estimated to be worth up to $500m. They include Renault and India’s Mahindra & Mahindra.
Sollers is a shareholder in Russian carmakers UAZ and ZMA. It opened the Vladivostok plant at the end of the 2009 for the assembly of Korean cars, with investment in the project reaching 5 billion roubles ($169m). Earlier this year it announced a joint venture with Italy’s Fiat with the intention to build as many as 500,000 cars in Russia by 2016 (read more here).
The fully built up units will be moved from Vladivostok for distribution to the Russian market by Russian Railways.
