Renault is still going to leave Russia

French company Renault made a surprise announcement today – it is “freezing” its business and is going to close production cars in Russia. As for AvtoVAZ, 68% of whose shares belong to the concern, Renault is thinking of selling its share, possibly to Chinese businessmen.


Renault management's statement sounds strange. Especially considering the fact that the other day they talked about working on building new supply chains for the supply of parts and electronic components necessary for the production of cars.

Before Russian drivers had time to be glad that reliable and inexpensive French cars would be available to them, an unexpected decision was made - from today (March 24, 2022) the plant in Moscow stops for an indefinite period.



Now it is already known what the businessmen’s statement is connected with – Ukrainian President Zelensky recently turned to the owners of large French concerns with strong advice to support economic sanctions against Russia not only in words, but also in actions.

It is clear that the leadership of Renault would not pay attention to this - they firmly decided to stay in a country where huge investments have been made and where excellent business has been established. But the businessmen were clearly pressured by the government - they are leaving so as not to lose more.

What will happen to AvtoVAZ now is not entirely clear. The Renault concern may well stop production completely, as the owner of a controlling stake. This has already been announced by Luca de Meo, the head of the Renault Group. Literally, the businessman said that he did not exclude such a possibility.

As for the 45 employees working in Russia and for the most part living there, they were promised to be treated "responsibly". How to understand this is still unclear.



Renault Group management officially declares that it is their duty to take all necessary measures to support and comply with international economic sanctions imposed against Russia by NATO countries.

The fate of AvtoVAZ is not yet clear - the owners of the controlling stake are considering options for selling their stake. To whom exactly they plan to sell their property is still unclear, but most likely it will be one of the Chinese companies.

As for businessmen from the Celestial Empire, this situation only plays into their hands. In any case, Russia will need cars, whether they will be produced by AvtoVAZ with new owners, or imported from China.