Ford Sollers Opens Up Elabuga Engine Plant
Ford Sollers kicked off production today at its Elabuga, Tatarstan engine plant, the first plant of its kind to be built in Russia under a foreign name brand. The plant, which was funded to the tune of $275 million, will produce three different version of the 1.6-liter Duratec engine that will power Ford vehicles built and sold in Russia, including the Fiesta, Focus, and EcoSport.
“The new Elabuga Engine Plant shows that our business plans are on track, and that Ford Sollers is becoming an increasingly important contributor to the Russian automotive industry,” Mark Ovenden, president and CEO, said.
“We are excited to launch our brand new engine production today. This is an advanced technology facility which brings Ford best practices and competences to Russia, and will help us to further strengthen our position in the country by offering localized products, specially-tailored for Russian customers,” said Ovenden.
The 42,600-square-meter plant is roughly the size of six football fields and located in the “Alabuga” economic zone of Elabuga adjacent to one of Ford Sollers’ three domestic assembly plants. Its stated annual production capacity is 105,000 engines at present, with the potential to expand up to 200,000 engines a year.
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