Jaguar Land Rover to up sales in Russia 50% in 2012
MOSCOW. Dec 16 (Interfax) - British car manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) plans to increase sales in Russia 50% year-on-year by the end of the 2012 financial year to 14,000-15,000 cars.
"The motor car market in Russia will grow 10% in 2012 and Jaguar Land Rover sales 50%, including sales of the new Range Rover Evoque, which will account for around 30% of all the company's sales. JLR sales in Russia will reach 14,000 to 15,000 in 2012," Jaguar Land Rover Russia General Director Frank Wittemann told Interfax.
The Evoque has been sold in Russia since late October and JLR cannot meet all the demand for that model because of limited supplies to the Russian market, he said. JLR will start offering the Russian market 5 new models and modifications in 2012.
Asked about possible production in Russia, Wittemann said "there are no plans to work with Avtotor at the moment. We did have relations with Avtotor in the past, but for now the establishment of local assembly in Russia is not a priority because we are not mass car producers," he said.
It was reported in mid-2011 that Jaguar Land Rover could in 2012 reconsider plans to set up an assembly plant in Russia. Avtotor also announced in early December that it had plans to work with JLR.
Jaguar Land Rover expects the market in Russia to expand to 3.4 million cars in the next five years.
JLR has three plants in Britain and one in India, which manufactures cars for the Indian market. It is considering setting up an assembly plant in China with a Chinese partner.
Annual investment in new models is planned at 1 billion pounds sterling.