Skoda on Friday (21 June) started production of the redesigned Octavia at GAZ Group’s factory in Nizhny Novgorod, Russia.
The Octavia is the brand’s bestselling car in Russia.
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“We are aiming for strong growth in Russia in the years ahead, and the start of production of the new Octavia is a very important step in this direction,“ said CEO Winfried Vahland.
“Russia has become our third-most important sales market worldwide and our number two in Europe. The Octavia currently accounts for more than half of our sales in Russia.”
The Nizhny Novgorod plant is a joint venture between Volkswagen Group Russia (VGR) and local automaker GAZ.
Russian production includes body welding, painting and final assembly. The Yeti is also assembled in Nizhny Novgorod.
VGR, GAZ and Skoda spent about EUR300m in new plant and modernisation at the plant.
In 2012, Skoda sold 52,000 Octavias in Russia. In the first five months of 2013, the model’s share of brand sales rose to 56% as about 18,800 were sold.
