Chinese automakers have taken over more than half of the Russian car market as Western manufacturers withdrew from the country following the invasion of Ukraine.
Producing in Russia
Now, they are expanding their reach into local production, reshaping Russia’s economy and industrial landscape.
Chery, a leading Chinese brand, already accounts for nearly one-fifth of Russia’s car sales and is assembling vehicles at three Russian plants, according to sources familiar with the operations.
After Russia imposed higher tariffs on imported cars, automakers like Chery began assembling nearly completed vehicles domestically, benefiting from underutilized production facilities left by Western companies, according to Digi24.
Though Chery has denied plans to build its own factories, the company’s Tiggo SUV models and luxury Exeed brand vehicles are rolling off Russian production lines, with models like the Tiggo 7 being rebranded as the Xcite X-Cross 7 at a former Nissan plant in St. Petersburg.
Quadrupled its sales
Chery’s expansion in Russia mirrors the resurrection of the Moskvich brand, a Soviet-era car, which is now produced at a former Renault plant using components from China's JAC Motors.
This strategy helps Chery and Russia minimize attention on their collaboration, especially as China’s growing economic ties with Russia raise concerns in the West.
Chery’s plans to grow beyond Russia are also taking shape, with a goal to enter more than 60 new markets in the next three years.
Despite tariffs imposed by the European Union on Chinese-made electric vehicles, Chery is still pursuing opportunities across Europe. The company insists that its Russian operations are entirely separate from its European expansion strategy.
In Russia, Chery has almost quadrupled its sales to over 200,000 vehicles in 2023, and it has already surpassed this figure in 2024, according to Russian data from Autostat.
The company’s growing presence, coupled with its “semi knocked down” (SKD) production strategy, is enabling it to finalize vehicle assembly at Russian plants, like the Kaluga facility, which will produce 27,000 vehicles this year.
