Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- Uzavtosanoat and Volkswagen Group Rus signed a cooperation agreement on organizing the production of cars in the Jizzakh FEZ on the basis of the Jizzakh Automobile Plant LLC, the Uzavtosanoat said in a statement.

According to the agreement, a subsidiary of the German concern Volkswagen AG, in addition to production, will also establish a further sales system. The plant will specialize in the production of a full industrial cycle of light commercial vehicles of several models of the Volkswagen concern, designed to carry passengers and goods.

Volkswagen Group Rus will provide new modern production technologies and processes, as well as conduct training for employees. The plant will operate in accordance with modern Volkswagen standards in the field of production, quality management, procurement, supply and sales systems.

The plans of the enterprise also include ensuring a certain level of localization by attracting domestic manufacturers of automotive components, which today comprise about 30 large factories owned by Uzavtosanoat, and more than 160 medium and small enterprises.

The production capacity of the enterprise will be up to 20,000 cars per year.

“The segment of light commercial vehicles has remained the only undeveloped in the automotive market of Uzbekistan today. The implementation of this project will allow for a new qualitative step in the development of the domestic automobile industry. The new joint venture, along with an increase in employment, will contribute to the further growth of industrial production in Uzbekistan,” said Shavkat Umurzakov, Chairman of the Board of Uzavtosanoat.

Volkswagen Group Rus CEO Markus Ozegovich noted that the automobile market of Uzbekistan is developing dynamically and has great growth potential in all segments. “We are confident that both the products of our concern and the high level of service at dealerships will be fully appreciated by Uzbek consumers,” he added.

Under the agreement, the parties agreed to start cooperation with the production and sale of the Volkswagen Caddy model in 2020, which will be offered in two versions: a 7-seater passenger station wagon and a cargo van. This model is intended for both commercial and family use. The car will be equipped with an economical 110 hp gasoline engine. and a volume of 1.6 liters. Fuel consumption in urban cycle mode is 9.3 liters per 100 km., On the highway - 6.1 liters per 100 km.

In addition, in the framework of cooperation, the possibility of production and delivery of other models from the wide range of Volkswagen Group in the future will be considered.