Mercedes-Benz and Ford Auto both officially announced their withdrawal from the Russian market on October 26. Now officially withdraw. Mercedes-Benz shares will be sold to local car dealer Avtodom. However, Mercedes-Benz said its 15% stake in , the Russian truck manufacturer Kamaz (Kamaz), will not be affected by the upcoming transaction and will be transferred to Daimler Trucks this year as planned.
Russian Avtodom said it will seek a technical partner to continue operating production facilities in the Esipovo industrial park in northwest of Moscow . Mercedes-Benz owns a factory there.
Mercedes-Benz has stopped production in Russia since early March. 9,558 cars were sold in Russia between January and September 2022, a 72.8% decrease from the same period last year. Now officially withdraw. Mercedes-Benz sold 43,011 cars in the Russian market throughout 2021.
Mercedes-Benz Chief Financial Officer Harald Wilhelm said in presenting his third-quarter results that exiting the Russian market will not have a greater impact on the group's profitability and financial position than it has been announced in previous quarters.
Ford also said it has finalized the sale of its 49% stake in the Russian Soler-Ford joint venture. The transaction price is not disclosed.
Like Mercedes-Benz, Ford announced in March that it would suspend its operations in Russia. Then announce the exit at the same time. Earlier this year, the U.S. automaker wrote down $122 million for suspending its operations in Russia.
However, Ford did not cut off all its retreat in Russia. Ford reserves the option to buy back shares within five years. It is reported that Mercedes-Benz may also have similar arrangements for priority repurchase rights. Before
, Nissan handed over its operations in Russia to a Russian state-owned enterprise at a symbolic value of one euro, losing approximately US$687 million, while Renault also sold its majority stake in Russia's Avtovaz for a price of one ruble . Both car manufacturers have added priority repurchase terms.
