Chery will transfer the assembly of Omoda cars from Kaliningrad to St. Petersburg and reduce their prices

The production of cars at the former American General Motors plant in Shushary will begin in 2026.

According to one of Vedomosti’s interlocutors, commissioning of equipment for the production of these cars is already underway at the site.

As explained by another source familiar with Chery’s plans, the transfer of the Omoda assembly from the Kaliningrad Avtotor to the AGR plant in St. Petersburg is associated with more convenient logistics and previously reached agreements on the production of another sub-brand – Jaecoo – at the facilities of the Russian holding.

Earlier, in the spring of 2025, the Chinese Cars portal reported that the Omoda C5 and C7 crossovers received vehicle type approval (VTA), where Avtotor was listed as the manufacturer. This certificate, required for registering a car, is valid for three years.

According to Gazprombank Autoleasing, last year 870 Omoda cars with Russian VIN numbers were sold in Russia – these are the C5 and C7 models assembled at Avtotor.

Localization of production could potentially reduce prices for Omoda by 15-20% due to incentives and simplified logistics, which will return demand for cars, says Denis Tverskoy, partner in the Operational Efficiency practice at Strategy Partners. According to his forecast, after localizing assembly, Omoda will be able to achieve sales volumes of 35 thousand – 40 thousand cars in 2026, including against the background of a decrease in imports.

Earlier it was reported that Hyundai Motor did not buy back the plant in St. Petersburg.