Automobile plant Derways found a buyer

The property of the Derways automobile plant in Cherkessk, closed in 2019, was sold at auction for 598.2 million rubles. The winner of the auction was the Dorogi Company, the main activity of which is the operation of roads and highways, RBC reports. Recall that the automobile company "Derways" was organized in October 2002 as an automobile division of a diversified corporation. In 2004, a SKD assembly of the Cowboy SUV, built on the chassis of the Romanian car Aro, began at the Circassian plant. However, its outdated design, the crisis situation of the Aro Company itself, as well as low demand for this model forced Derways to refocus on the products of the Chinese automaker Dadi. As a result, in 2005, the Circassian enterprise mastered the production of several models of this brand, which entered the market under the Derways brand.

Assembly of the Derways Shuttle and Aurora SUVs, as well as the DerwaysPlutus pickup truck, continued until July 2008. As part of an agreement with the Chinese company Lifan, in August 2007, Derways started the SKD assembly of Lifan Breez cars. In September 2009, the Circassian plant launched a full-scale production of this model. With the launch of new welding and painting facilities, Derways began to expand its brand portfolio and model range. Over the years, the Circassian enterprise also produced cars of such brands as Geely, Great Wall, Haima, Luxgen, Brilliance, JAC, Hawtai and Chery. In December 2018, a criminal case was initiated against the management of Derways on suspicion of large-scale tax evasion.

In this regard, production at the Circassian enterprise was stopped, and in February 2020, the plant was officially declared bankrupt. In 2021, they tried to sell it for 1.5 billion rubles.