Waiting list: will foreign automakers return to Russia
Foreign automakers that have left the Russian market risk losing the right to buy out their enterprises in our country. Mazda has already expired the application, and other companies are in line. Which automakers are showing interest in their Russian assets? Is it worth waiting for the resumption of assembly of European, American, Japanese and South Korean cars in Russia? Details can be found in the Izvestia article.
With and without an option
Mazda has not exercised an option to buy back a 50% stake in a joint venture with Sollers for the production of cars in Vladivostok, the Reuters news agency reports. The agreement expired in October 2025. The Russian office of the Japanese company was unable to promptly respond to Izvestia's questions.
Hyundai and Kia (until 2026) and Nissan (until 2028) still have an option to buy out their production facilities in Russia. Renault may return its stake in AvtoVAZ also until 2028. Mercedes-Benz has sold its plant near Moscow to the Russian Avtodom dealer holding with a streamlined formulation. The German manufacturer reserves the right to repurchase assets on condition that sanctions are lifted from Russia and for a fair market price determined by an independent appraiser. Toyota and VW transferred their enterprises to the Russian side without options.
What do they do in factories?
Currently, the work of most of the Russian factories owned by the departed automakers has been resumed mainly due to the "eastern partners" supplying machine kits. So, at the mentioned plant in Vladivostok, the Russian company Sollers first started assembling pickups, and now it produces two models of tourist buses.
— There is no information about further production plans for this site yet, the Sollers press service told Izvestia. In addition, Sollers launched sites in Yelabuga, where Ford commercial vehicles were made, and in Ulyanovsk, where Isuzu was produced. They have organized the production of a wide range of commercial vehicles.
The former Renault plant in Moscow produces cars under the Moskvich brand and prepares the production of Atom electric vehicles. The former Nissan plant first produced Xcite crossovers, and now it is focused on assembling Lada Iskra. In Kaluga, at the former VW plant, the production of Tenet cars was launched, at the former PSMA RUS site, the Citroen C5 Aircross was first assembled, and currently the Haval M6 crossovers.
Kaliningrad-based Avtotor, which previously assembled BMW, Hyundai and Kia, switched to large-scale assembly of cars of various Chinese brands. The plant has already reported on the modernization of production lines and is ready to switch to welding and painting machines.
The former Hyundai/Kia site in St. Petersburg stands apart - it organizes the assembly of cars under the Solaris brand from the remaining car kits.
Which businesses are not loaded yet
The former Toyota plant in St. Petersburg is scheduled to be restarted in early to mid-2026. This was stated by Alexander Sitov, Chairman of the Committee on Industrial Policy, Innovation and Trade of St. Petersburg.
On October 31, First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov announced the restart of 11 of the 13 automobile plants that were abandoned by foreign companies that left the country.
According to him, full-cycle car production will be launched at the former General Motors plant in St. Petersburg. Negotiations with investors on sites in Shushary and Nizhny Novgorod are in the final stages. Probably, in the second case, we are talking about cars under the Volga brand.
Manturov also spoke about the localization of the production of Exeed cars in the Moscow region. Apparently, we are talking about the former Mercedes-Benz plant in the Esipovo Industrial Park in the Moscow region.
This became possible due to government support measures, including through the improvement of the recycling collection mechanism, the First Deputy Prime Minister noted.
"Any profit will be cancelled out"
So far, only Hyundai has shown interest in its Russian plant from the previous owners. As previously reported, the South Korean concern will consider a plan to buy back the Russian plant using an option that expires at the end of 2025. For Hyundai, a return to the Russian market may provide an opportunity to offset the impact of U.S. tariffs.
"In case of successful buyout, Hyundai plans to convert its plant in St. Petersburg into a European export hub. On the contrary, if it is decided to abandon the share buyback, the company will probably give priority to creating an alternative base in a neighboring country rather than building a new plant in Russia," Korea Economic TV reports.
In February, Renault CEO Luca Demeo said the company would not rule out a return to Russia. However, then information appeared that the French company intends to build a factory for the production of drones in Ukraine. As a result, the company was placed on the Russian sanctions list.
In the current situation, the return of any of the automakers is simply impossible, says the vice president of the National Automobile Union (NAS). Jan Heitser. Sanctions and fines from their own governments will cancel out any profit from a potential return to the Russian Federation.,
"In the case of Renault, even the theoretical lifting of sanctions by the EU will not allow this automaker to return to our market, since Russia has already imposed counter—sanctions against it," he said.
Guarantees are needed
In any case, returning to Russia will not be easy. A letter from the Federation Council Committee on Economic Policy addressed to First Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov lists a number of obligations that car companies will have to fulfill if they want to re-enter the Russian market.
Most of them are dedicated to creating guarantees that production will continue if foreign brands decide to leave the country again.
One such measure is that car companies are required to work only within the framework of a joint venture with domestic automakers, provided that the Russian side retains control over it.
In addition, if the company decides to operate in the Russian market again, any sanctions against Russia from the state of its registration should be lifted.
"They will produce cars in parallel"
— If we assume that the geopolitical situation will change, then, most likely, Korean companies will be the first to decide to return. If we just talk about official deliveries of cars, it will take relatively little time. Production is another matter — it is unlikely that the state will allow those who left to return on the same terms. Most likely, there will be requirements for a 50/50 share, responsibilities for transferring software and technology to the Russian side, and so on," said Maxim Kadakov, editor—in-chief of Za Rulem.
If any company wants to return, all this will be considered individually, even if the formal return period is overdue, Kadakov is sure.
— We understand that all our plants that have been restarted are loaded by 10-20-30% at best. And, most likely, it is difficult to expect any serious increases in downloads in the near future. If the parties come together, they will find someone to move, or they will produce cars in parallel. This is not a problem," Maxim Kadakov believes.
If Western, Japanese or Korean automakers decide to return, they will actually have to start from scratch, says Ilya Petrov, Director of retail Sales at Avilon AG.
According to him, assembly in Russia, depending on the degree of localization, really makes it possible to reduce the cost of manufactured cars by using domestic components and compensating for scrap.
"Remains one of the most capacious in the world"
The interest in a possible return can be explained by the re-registration of trademarks, the retention of their representative offices by most automakers and the implementation of user support, Mikhail Khachaturian, associate professor of the Department of Strategic and Innovative Development at the Faculty of Higher School of Management at the Financial University under the Government of the Russian Federation, told Izvestia.
If we estimate losses due to withdrawal from the Russian market, and these amounts ranged from $ 1 billion to $ 5-6 billion, then the Russian market is of considerable interest to foreign automakers, the expert believes.
— The Russian car market has shown signs of a sharp decline in production since the pandemic period, and this trend continues today. Hence the trend towards low utilization of car factories and low sales of new cars. At the same time, the Russian car market remains one of the most capacious in the world and the prospects for its development are very significant, which is confirmed by the very active position of Chinese automakers," the expert noted.
Mikhail Khachaturian suggested that the return process will begin with import, with a gradual transition to large-scale assembly, and only after 3-4 years to the full cycle.
Did not pull the rubber
Unlike automakers, not all tire brands have left the Russian market. Thus, the Swedish brand Gislaved continues to be present in Russia.
Since 2023, it belongs to JSC "Cordiant". The rights to the brand, while maintaining advanced technologies and formulations, were transferred as part of a deal to acquire the Russian assets of the German premium tire manufacturer Continental AG, the press service of the Cordiant holding told Izvestia. Tires are manufactured in Kaluga and Ulyanovsk.
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