Hyundai Motor Company was in final negotiations to sell its manufacturing plant in Russia to a local business due to the ongoing invasion of the Ukraine, according to unconfirmed media reports in the country.
The automaker was said to be talking with AGR Automotive Group, formerly known as Volkswagen Group Russia (AGR), to sell its manufacturing plant in St Petersburg.
The factory has been idle since March 2022, after producing 234,000 vehicles in 2021 including 25,500 exports. The plant made Tucson and Pallisade SUVs and the Rio compact sedan.
Hyundai would join a growing list of global automakers who had cut their losses and departed Russia following the invasion of Ukraine with local companies picking up advanced manufacturing assets on the cheap.
Earlier this year, Volkswagen and Toyota relinquished control of their vehicle plants in the country to local entities while Ford exited its local joint venture in 2022.
Chinese brands had been filling the void although there were reports that a large number of European made cars were making its way into Russia through third party countries such as Kazakhstan.
The value of the deal Hyundai plant sale was expected to be announced in the next few weeks, according to sources close to the automaker.
Hyundai had not confirmed the report but had said previously it was reviewing the future of its Russian operations.
Industry officials suggested AGR, previously VW’s local dealer group, beat local automaker Avtotor and China’s Chery Automobile to acquire the plant.
