Volkswagen to build engine factory in Russia

Volkswagen Group is to open a new engine factory in Russia in 2015 to support its significant growth plans in the Russian car market. The new 250 million euro engine facility will be sited next to the existing VW Group car plant in Kaluga, just west of Moscow. It will initially build an engine at the rate of 150,000 units per year from the new EA211 engine family developed specifically for the Russian market, a 1.6 4V MPI petrol unit with 109bhp and 118lb ft of torque. Further engines from the EA211 family – including a turbocharged petrol – could also be added to the plant in due course, as could a diesel engine and even a facility to build transmissions further down the line. The new 1.6-litre engine will be used in models produced at both VW’s Kaluga car plant and a contract facility operated by GAZ. The Skoda Yeti, Octavia and Fabia, and the VW Polo saloon and Tiguan are the models currently built by VW in Russia. Around one third of these models built from 2015 are expected to be sold with the new 1.6 engine. VW Group expects its sales in Russia to grow from 228,799 units in 2011 to half a million by 2018 as part of VW’s stated desire of being the world’s largest car maker. Marcus Osegowitsch, general director of VW Group Rus, said the new engine would allow the Group to pay less import duty on components and increase its local supplier base thus “driving down the costs of products”. VW announced the news at the Moscow motor show.