Toyota to shut Russian plant

Toyota has announced it is to stop making vehicles in Russia because of the interruption in supplies of key materials and parts.

The Japanese marque suspended production at its St Petersburg factory in March due to supply-chain problems and also stopped importing to Russia.

“During this period we have fully retained our workforce and ensured our facility was ready to restart production if the circumstances allowed,” the company says in a statement.

“However, after six months, we have not been able to resume normal activities and see no indication that we can restart in the future.”

Toyota adds its operations in Moscow need to be restructured, but it will continue supporting its retail network in providing service to existing Toyota and Lexus customers.

The St Petersburg factory has a capacity of 100,000 units a year and has produced the Camry and RAV4 models, reports Reuters.

A number of factories in Russia have suspended work due to shortages of high-tech equipment following sanctions and an exodus of Western manufacturers since the Kremlin sent troops into Ukraine in late February.

Jaguar has stopped exporting vehicles to Russia, Ford and BMW have suspended some production, and tyre manufacturers Michelin and Nokian plan to quit the country.