MOSCOW, January 13. /TASS/. The construction of a Mercedes-Benz auto plant in the Moscow Region will begin in 2018, Russia’s Industry and Trade Minister Denis Manturov said on the sidelines of the Gaidar economic forum on Friday.

"An inter-departmental commission held its session literally recently and it made a positive decision at the end of last year. Beginning with next year it [the company] will start building the production facility," the minister said.

The production of cars will begin in about another three years, he added.

"As of today, all approvals, including formal, related to the provision of sites and technical connections have been made," Manturov said.

The German auto giant Daimler signed an agreement on the construction of the Mercedes-Benz auto plant in the Moscow Region at the St. Petersburg economic forum in June 2016. The project’s investments were estimated at 300 million euros and production volumes at 25,000-30,000 cars annually.

Daimler had long planned to organize its local production in Russia and had held negotiations with the Russian authorities on this issue for several years. The auto giant considered various sites, including in St. Petersburg and Nizhny Novgorod, but subsequently opted for the Moscow Region.

If constructed, the auto plant will produce five car models of the S, E, ML, GL and A series.