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Renault Financially Backs AvtoVAZ Shake-Up

Renault has already expressed its support for AvtoVAZ, the Russian automaker now on the verge of bankruptcy, and company officials today revealed that the French company will also provide money for a shake-up within its Russian partner. However, Renault Chief Operating Officer Patrick Pelata said it won't inject more money in AvtoVAZ and will continue, as previously stated, to support the company with technologies and other resources.

"They would love us to pour in lots of money because AvtoVAZ needs money but we don't have a lot of money. We told them we cannot put more money in the joint venture," Pelata was quoted as saying by Reuters. "We're going to pay our share... It's not small money but it's not half a billion," he added.

Earlier this month, Renault confirmed that, together with its global ally Nissan and AvtoVAV, it will launch five new models in the Russian market by 2014. AvtoVAZ plans to roll out around 445,000 cars next year, an increase of 145,000 from this year's production goal.

"Despite what I'm often hearing, we don't want the Lada brand to disappear ... We are transferring our technology to AvtoVAZ and I'm confident that new high-quality Russian cars will be leaving the assembly lines of AvtoVAZ starting from 2012," Renault Senior Vice President Christian Esteve said according to Itar-Tass news agency.

Furthermore, Russian officials confirmed Renault is willing to step in and help AvtoVAZ, revealing that the French manufacturer only intends to supply technologies that could make the Russian models more competitive.

"They confirm that they are ready in invest in AvtoVAZ's development and provide the most advanced technologies, which will be evaluated in the most transparent way," First Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov told reporters last week. "The most important thing is that Renault has confirmed strategic interest in the development of Avtovaz. Renault is ready to invest in Avotvaz," he added.
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About the author: Bogdan Popa
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Bogdan keeps an eye on how technology is taking over the car world. His long-term goals are buying an 18-wheeler because he needs more space for his kid’s toys, and convincing Google and Apple that Android Auto and CarPlay deserve at least as much attention as their phones.
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