Denis Manturov called for a reasonable approach to the localization of automotive components

11 March 2019

At a meeting with  representatives of the AEB, the Minister of industry and trade Denis Manturov called for further increase the localization of production in Russia

Today the Minister of industry and trade Denis Manturov met with the members of the Association of European businesses (AEB) in the Radisson hotel Collection Hotel Moscow.

The meeting was opened by Johan Vanderplaetse, Chairman of the AEB. He noted that the dialogue with the Ministry essential of European companies doing business in the Russian Federation and investing in its economy: "Our overall goals are clear: strengthen the Russian economy to become one of the leading in the world; the development of the industry through the introduction of new technologies and best practices, and promoting the maintenance of fair trade and equal conditions for all participants of economic activities".

The Minister of industry and trade of Russia Denis Manturov made a speech in which he addressed the issues of recent changes in the institution of special investment contracts (SPIC), the requirements of production and the introduction of traceability of products through their marks in Russia and other EurAsEC countries.

The Minister explained: "By 2024, we expect to increase the volume of the item that relates to mass demand, in order to reduce counterfeiting, falsification, and to ensure including the best collection of taxes due to the legally manufactured products due to the fact that good manufacturers will be protected in the domestic market."

Speaking about localization in the automotive industry, Denis Manturov said that the Ministry had taken a "sensible approach" to the issue, to encourage producers to localize production. He noted that now our automotive industry is in a fundamentally different position: "If then when the agreement on the organization of Assembly production in Russia only signed, the share of Russian Assembly of cars in the market did not exceed 15%, last year it was 85%. So, now our auto industry produces a completely global level. Now, the challenge is to increase the proportion of domestic components, while maintaining the achieved level of quality."

The Minister also stressed the importance of productive dialogue between Russia and the EU in the framework of harmonization of technical standards and regulations, and even allowed for the integration of the future markets of the EAEU and the EU.

After the briefing, Mr. Manturov was followed by a session of questions and answers, which was moderated by CEO of AEB Dr. Frank Schauff. He noted that the situation in which you have to work with foreign investors, is very complicated and unfortunately not getting better.

"We hope that the Russian government is ready to do everything possible to simplify already working in Russia foreign investors, and thus attract new ones."

Representatives of the companies-AEB members received answers to their most pressing questions directly from the Minister.