OREANDA-NEWS. July 8, 2009. The results of the company’s activity in 2008 were made public at the annual general shareholders’ meeting of KAMAZ Inc. which was held in Naberezhnye Chelny on 26 June.

The global economic recession which shook the whole world in the second half of 2008 didn’t by-pass Russia either. As a result, the year which had promised to be quite successful tested all Russian economic players severely. It was obviously the most tangible test for manufacturers of production goods including heavy trucks. The maximal sales slowdown was observed on the market of heavy construction automotive equipment which is directly connected with delayed paces of construction. In the first place the bank liquidity crisis affected this economy sector.

RUSSIAN AUTOMOTIVE INDUSTRY. Over 9 months of 2008 the Russian truck market grew by 25.7% on the analogous period of 2007 and formed 105 thousand trucks (with account of import vehicles). Moreover, in the fourth quarter of 2008 sales made only 21 thousand units, which was half as much as for the analogous period of 2007. On the whole in 2008 the market of trucks with 14-40 t GVW made up 126 thousand units, which is by 1.2% less than in 2007.

ECONOMY AND FINANCES. In 2008 the consolidated proceeds of the KAMAZ Group of Companies grew by 2% and formed 116 billion roubles against 113 billion roubles in 2007. In spite of the abrupt decline in sales in the fourth quarter of 2008 and considerable losses from the difference of exchange which had arisen as a result of the rouble devaluation the company managed to finish 2008 with a net profit to the tune of 2.8 billion roubles.

PRODUCTION AND SALES. During three quarters KAMAZ was not inferior to the average growth rates of the Russian truck industry in its class, and in some segments it outstripped them appreciably. In all 47850 trucks were produced and realized – almost by 10% more than for the analogous period of 2007, including 32135 vehicles on the Russian market (+16.3%). The company’s business plan was overfulfilled in all activities without exception. As a result in 2008 KAMAZ realized 47.5 thousand trucks, which is by 9.8% less than in 2007. Nevertheless the company’s market share made 28%, KAMAZ remained the leader on the Russian truck market and on the whole continued developing on foreign outlets. KAMAZ maintains the leading positions in all production segments of the Russian market of trucks with 14-40 t GVW (from 38% to 50%) except long-haul tractors.

EXPORT. Export sales in 2008 made up 24% of the total truck sales volume – 11.3 thousand units. KAMAZ vehicles and spare parts to them were delivered to 42 countries. KAMAZ kept its superiority on the markets of Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine and Kazakhstan. The number of vehicles delivered to the Azerbaijan market grew considerably – 2.6 times as many, the number of vehicles delivered to Turkmenistan almost tripled. The considerable share of KAMAZ vehicles was realized in the countries of Southeast Asia (Vietnam, Korea), Africa (Angola, Algeria, Gabon) and Middle East (Iran, Bahrain, UAE). Besides the traditional export markets, the most promising markets are Cuba, Angola, Republic of South Africa, Saudi Arabia, UAE, India, from the point of view of KAMAZ production sales. Also the company is still interested in the markets of the countries of Central-East Europe (Serbia, Poland, Bulgaria, etc.). In the present time many countries are already operating or potential outlets of KAMAZ vehicles in these regions.

LEASING DEVELOPMENT. Since 2005 OAO KAMAZ Leasing Company has been among the top twenty largest leasing companies of Russia. Expert RA (Rating Agency) for the second year in succession (2007-2008) gives the company “A.rm” – the high quality rating of risk-management systems, and “A” – the highest reliability rating. OAO KAMAZ Leasing Company is acknowledged by Expert RA the most reliable company of 2008. On the whole OAO KAMAZ Leasing Company has got 12 branch offices in Moscow, Saint-Petersburg, Nizhny Novgorod, Kazan, Krasnodar, Yekaterinburg, Kemerovo, Syktyvkar, Surgut, Voronezh, Rostov-on-Don, Kursk.

DEALER AND SERVICE NETWORK. The ramified network of authorized service is the most important competitive advantage of KAMAZ Inc. More than 270 centers and their subdivisions serviced KAMAZ vehicles in Russia and abroad at the beginning of 2009. The standard “About dealer centers of KAMAZ Inc.” defining requirements to the dealers of KAMAZ Inc. was introduced. Certification of service centers in accordance with the standard of KAMAZ Inc. enables to optimize the number and quality of the dealer network objects.

TECHNICAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT. None the less, from the point of view of the technical development in 2008, KAMAZ took a big step forward. According to the requirements of the technical regulations in the Russian Federation the company started producing vehicles satisfying the requirements of Euro-3 ecological standards since January 2008. And now developing are the investment areas without which KAMAZ risks to lose its competitiveness. They include projects for production of four- and six-cylinder engines with cubic capacity of 4.0 – 7.0 liters by Cummins, production of a wide model range of ZF mechanical and automated gearboxes for trucks and a new generation truck line, in particular, a new line of cabs, axles and 12-liter Euro-5 engines. Another project is a promising line of all-wheel-drive multifunctional vehicles. All four projects are being realized now. At the end of 2008 the total sum of KAMAZ means invested into the above mentioned projects formed 5 billion roubles.

INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION. It should be noted that in December 2008 Daimler AG (Germany) obtained 10% of the authorized capital stock of KAMAZ Inc., which triggered the two auto producers’ new mutually beneficial strategic partnership. This is Daimler’s cutting-edge technologies accessible to KAMAZ, and an opportunity for Daimler to promote its products on the Russian market which was and remains one of the largest in Europe.