BMW is considering building a new plant in Russia. A possible location is Kaliningrad. The investment would be according to media reports several hundred million euros.
BMW headquarters in Munich
Monday, 09.10.2017
16:40
BMW is considering the construction of its first own plant in Russia. One possible location is Kaliningrad, the area on the Baltic Sea around the former Königsberg. The communicated the Munich automaker, after the Russian newspaper “Vedomosti” had reported about it. BMW considers Russia as a growing market and is currently reviewing the “future activities relating to a plant,” the statement said. According to the newspaper, the investment would amount to several hundred million euros.
BMW has been cooperating in Russia with the Kaliningrad contract manufacturer Awtotor since 1999, and the company is building BMWs for the Russian market according to Munich specifications. “Given the long-term presence of BMW in Kaliningrad, the attractive investment environment and the local government’s plans to further promote it, we consider Kaliningrad as a potential location for a plant,” the statement said.
Accordingly, there have already been talks with the regional government and Awtotor, but no decision has yet been made: “The BMW Group is closely monitoring the market situation and the regulatory framework.”
The Russian economy is currently recovering from a deep crisis triggered by the collapse in oil prices and Western sanctions following the Russian annexation of the Ukrainian Crimea.