Renault chief Carlos Ghosn says he sees logic in the French carmaker taking a controlling stake in AvtoVAZ.

Discover B2B Marketing That Performs

Combine business intelligence and editorial excellence to reach engaged professionals across 36 leading media platforms.

Find out more

Following a meeting with Russian prime minister Vladimir Putin, Ghosn told reporters that increasing Renault’s current 25% stake would be a “logical development of our partnership”.

After two years of plummeting sales, things are looking better for AvtoVAZ which said that sales are now running more than 40% ahead of last year as the market is stimulated by the governments scrappage scheme.

AvtoVAZ has sold 418,016 vehicles in January–October, the company said in a statement. Of this total, 166,437 cars were sold under the scrappage programme.

Under the scheme, which started in March, owners of cars produced before 2000 can receive bonuses worth RUR50,000 (US$1,600) to buy new Russian-made cars in exchange for recycling their old vehicles.

In October, AvtoVAZ sold 50,251 cars, up 78.1% on the year – 27,297 of them under the scrappage scheme.

Just Auto Excellence Awards - Nominations Closed

Nominations are now closed for the Just Auto Technology Excellence Awards. A big thanks to all the organisations that entered – your response has been outstanding, showcasing exceptional innovation, leadership, and impact.

Excellence in Action
Continental has secured the Window Displays Innovation Award in the 2025 Just Auto Excellence Awards for its Window Projection solution, transforming side windows into dynamic, data-rich canvases. Discover how this compact projection technology and intelligent software are reshaping in-car UX and opening fresh revenue streams for OEMs and mobility providers.

Discover the Impact