LADA Zapad Togliatti plant assembled the last LADA Niva Travel

LADA Zapad Togliatti plant (former GM-AVTOVAZ) has stopped vehicle production. On 20 July, the last LADA Niva Travel SUV, which has been produced here since 2002, was assembled at the enterprise. From now on, this model will be produced at the main AVTOVAZ site in Togliatti on the Niva Legend line, while LADA Zapad Togliatti plant will be closed down.

Under the transfer of the LADA Niva Travel production, employees of LADA Zapad Togliatti will become AVTOVAZ employees and will get extended social benefits and guarantees provided under AVTOVAZ collective agreement. We should remind that in May, AVTOVAZ started test assembly of the Lada Niva to adjust the entire manufacturing chain. The company’s press service did not specify when AVTOVAZ plans to start serial production of this model. Earlier it was reported that the project is scheduled to be completed before the end of the summer corporate vacation in August 2021.

In December 2019, AVTOVAZ purchased 50% share of the Togliatti joint venture GM-AVTOVAZ from the American company General Motors. The production site, later renamed LADA Zapad Togliatti, became 100% owned by AVTOVAZ, and the Niva returned to LADA product portfolio. In July 2020, AVTOVAZ launched the Niva SUV production and sales under LADA brand, and in December, LADA Zapad Togliatti enterprise started production of an updated model called LADA Niva Travel.