OREANDA-NEWS. Prototypes of Chevrolet Niva of new generation are being tested in Europe and Russia. The CEO of joint venture, Jeffrey Glover, said about it in the meeting on the development of "GM-AVTOVAZ" in Togliatti, by adding that the mass production of the new SUV is to begin in 2016.

According to him, currently the plant produces monthly about 3 thousand cars. "Given the high localization of production, and it is about 85%, we, unlike our competitors, don't have direct dependence on the rate of the national currency. So, the price of the cars were increased only by 10%, while automakers that produce SUVs in this segment, increased prices by about 30%", - said Jeffrey Glover. However, management expects the car production decline this year due to the unstable situation.

General Director of the Special Economic Zone "Togliatti", Alex Pakhomenko, noted that already 9 enterprises are deploying the production of automotive components in the SEZ, which will permit to increase the localization and therefore to reduce the price of the final product.

The main issue on the agenda was the discussion of the prospects for the second-generation of Chevrolet Niva. For the setting of the car on the conveyor it is required about 4 billion Rubles, however, the shareholders of the joint venture - General Motors and AvtoVAZ - are fear of financial risks due to the economic situation. On the other hand, the president of AvtoVAZ, Bo Andersson, and Jeffrey Glover expressed the view that the continuation of cooperation is beneficial for both companies. "We need to work out the general concept for this project", - said Boo Andresson.

And the governor of the Samara region, Nikolai Merkushin, stressed that the launch of production of the new Chevrolet Niva is extremely important for Samara region. "This company employs about 1,500 people; the annual output is about 20 billion Rubles, which is 8% of the total industrial production in the region. From all points of view, the government is interested in this project", - said the head of the region.

The governor also said that the regional authorities are ready to provide guarantees for the soft loan for the joint venture. Another possibility - it is the inclusion in the federal program. "At the federal level, there are programs to support real projects. We have many chances to participate in it. The fact is that the project of Chevrolet Niva of second generation is worked out in detail. We all want to move forward and develop. Therefore, we will provide all necessary assistance to the enterprise", - concluded Nikolai Merkushin.