Skoda To Start Full-Cycle Production of the New Fabia in Russia

MILTON KEYNES, UNITED KINGDOM – April 30, 2010: Skoda Auto Russia announced it has begun full-cycle production of the new Škoda Fabia at the Russian launch of the car on April 28 at its Kaluga factory. The Škoda Fabia has become the second model in the Škoda range to be produced in full-cycle at the factory, which includes welding, painting and assembly. The previous Fabia model was built at Kaluga factory by SKD. The first model to change to a CKD-production was the Škoda Octavia.

Fabia is a best-selling model of Škoda’s range in the Russian and global markets. In 2009, 264,173 Fabias were sold globally; an increase of 7.1 per cent on the previous year. The Fabia was Russia’s best seller in 2009.

“Over the past few years, Škoda has been very successful and record sales were once again achieved in 2009. A main contributing factor for this market growth is the continued development in areas such as Russia, India and China. With our investments in Kaluga production, dealer network and products we will continue to strengthen our position in the Russian market,” said Reinhard Jung, head of Škoda Auto board of directors.

Petr Janeba, Head of Škoda Russia added: “Russia is one of the key markets for Škoda and we expect to see sustained future growth. One of our primary objectives is to increase our production capacities and we are already achieving success in this as all Škoda models are produced at the Russian factory in Kaluga; providing attractive price-quality ratio to our clients, faster reaction to the local market changes and to our Russian customers’ requirements. In October 2009, we started full-cycle production of the Škoda Octavia and today we are ready to announce the start of the second model production by CKD.

“The Škoda Fabia is such a popular vehicle in the Russian market and we happy to say that it is now the second all-Russian car of our brand. We are pleased to showcase it for the first time at our factory!”

“Škoda Fabia is the third model in the Group to be produced in full-cycle including welding, painting and assembly. Our Kaluga factory with its wide model line-up is unique for Volkswagen Group and we intend to increase the number of models in the future. Most importantly, we produce all vehicles in accordance with the highest quality standards,” concluded Dietmar Korzekwa, General Director of Volkswagen Group Rus.

The new Fabia will be available at all official Russian dealerships from the beginning of May 2010. Škoda Fabia together with Škoda Octavia are participating in the state credit and scrappage incentive programs. Special terms of car purchase make this model affordable. Success of the Fabia has allowed Škoda to gain a leading position in Russia’s compact car segment.