MOSCOW, January 21 (Itar-Tass) - Creation of a joint venture of one of Sberbank’s companies and the Moscow government holding 64 percent of the Russian truck manufacturer ZIL would be completed by April, the Moscow administration’s employee and a source close to ZIL told the Vedomosti daily. The parties signed a letter of intent in 2012 and a legally binding agreement in late 2013.
Sberbank’s unit and ZIL will hold 51 and 49 percent of the JV respectively to be established on the basis of ZIL’s 100 percent subsidiary MosavtoZIL. According to the sources, Sberbank will contribute to the JV the assets of the Derways, Russian manufacturer of Chinese cars, the Moscow government — buildings and facilities on an area of 50 hectares with the right to long-term rent, as well as AMO Plant, an assembling plant in Latvia producing licensed buses and tractors. Monetary contributions are also planned. The parties declined to reveal more details.
The JV’s main aim is to organize production of Fiat and Renault light commercial vehicles (LCV), which, according to the sources, may start in April - May with semi-knockdown assembly to be then followed by full-cycle manufacturing with welding and painting. The planned capacity is 50,000 LCV a year.
Negotiations are under way about the production of two models, Fiat Ducato and Renault Master. Preliminary agreements with both companies were signed on August 1, 2013. Legally binding agreements can be concluded in the near future.
The amount of the deal is not revealed; 12 billion roubles ($363.5 million) was reported in 2012. Production will be mainly financed by Sberbank’s loan, one of the Vedomosti’s sources said without revealing the sum.