AvtoVaz, Russia’s largest automaker and a Kazakh Asia Avto have signed a memorandum on building a plant in Kazakhstan, which will produce Russian cars, says the official press release. The agreement on building the plant in Ust- Kamenogorsk was reached in the end of 2011.

The plant will focus on production of Lada Granta and a renewed Kalina. Output from the new Kazakh plant is expected to be sold in the markets of Middle Asia, Siberia and the Far East region of Russia.

The first stage of production, around 60,000 cars per year, is expected to be launched in 2014. In the second phase the volume of production will be increased up to 120,000 cars.

The sum of investments into the project will amount $ 400 million. According to AvtoVaz, its share in the Kazakh car market is 37 %.