Chery to build JV in Belarus to export cars to Russia
- Source: Global Times
- [16:54 December 08 2010]
- Comments
Chery Automobile Co has signed letters of intent with the government of Belarus to build a joint venture with an investment of $1 billion aiming to promote its sales in the Russian market.
Most of the funds for the project is expected to be provided by the Chinese government as part of the $1 billion loan agreed on in March by China and Belarus, according to China Car Times.
Chery has been looking for an opportunity to set up production of its low-priced cars in the CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) countries for the past several years due to the high demand there.
In 2009, the company decided to produce vehicles in Belarus to avoid the uncertainty of Russia's marketing policy. In accordance with the free trade agreement signed between Russia and CIS, once Chery produces over 50 percent Belarus-made vehicles, access to the Russian market will be granted.
The automaker's previous attempts at joint ventures with Russian companies Avtotor and TagAZ were not met with success.
Agencies and Shi Jierui contributed to this story
