OREANDA-NEWS. November 26, 2010. Today, a meeting of the Council of General and Chief Designers of Russia was held at KAMAZ. Then, a ceremonial meeting of Sergey Ivanov, Deputy Chairman of the RF Government, and Rustam Minnikhanov, President of the Republic of Tatarstan, took place (see photos). Later they answered journalists’ questions.

Opening the meeting of the Council Sergey Ivanov noted that the automobile industry of Russia set itself difficult tasks specified in the Strategy of the Automobile Industry Development in the RF till 2020. In particular, he said that it was planned to yearly produce up to 280 thousand heavy-duty vehicles and up to 35 thousand buses in Russia.

According to Sergey Ivanov, the share of added value in the automobile industry should grow from 21 to 48% due to the implemented Strategy. The share of vehicle export in the total volume of truck production will reach 50%, and the share of buses will go up to 23%. The share of import in money terms is to drop from 60 to 20%.

“As you see, a special stress will be laid exactly on trucks,” emphasized Vice-Premier of the RF Government. “In order to achieve these goals, the Russian companies should catch up with the world’s leading and technologically superior auto producers, which requires to perfect R&D programs for development of new vehicles and automobile components.”

Sergey Ivanov noted that new technologies should include supercomputer-aided engineering. “I want to do KAMAZ justice,” he said. “The enterprise started using a new supercomputer – a development of the federal nuclear center in Sarov. On the one hand, it will enable to use the computer’s capacities, and on the other hand, to bring engineering processes up to a new level. KAMAZ shows its absolutely right approach to the problem.”

Vice-Premier of the RF Government noted that trucks with Euro-3 engines were already produced in the country, and manufacturing of vehicles with Euro-4 engines would be launched on January 1, 2012. KAMAZ and Cummins are successfully working together to improve quality and lengthen an operating life of diesel engines. Preproduction of diesel engines complying with Euro-4 international standards is coming to an end, and works are being carried out to reach the level of Euro-5. “So, serial production of Euro-4 engines will undoubtedly start in Russia on the 1st of January 2012,” said Sergey Ivanov.

“The Republic of Tatarstan considers the automobile industry as a prospect of development of its mechanical engineering sector,” said President of Tatarstan Rustam Minnikhanov. According to him, the government of the republic will help to concentrate high-tech companies producing auto components in Tatarstan.

“Tatarstan is a petrochemical republic, a leading plastic producer, and we should bend every effort to produce auto components on our premises – in the Alabuga Special Economic Zone and Industial Park Master functioning on the facilities of KAMAZ. To date, we invite foreign companies here. KAMAZ has already established joint ventures with several large foreign companies. And we will continue developing this area in the future, too,” assured the RT President.