Sollers starts body-panel production in Ulyanovsk Oblast

Body production launches

Serial production of Sollers body parts began in its New Technology Park in Ulyanovsk Oblast on 19 June 2026, according to Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov’s secretariat. Stamping uses Russian galvanized metal supplied by Magnitogorsk Iron and Steel Works. Future production is intended to localise pickup and SUV bodies, followed by UAZ panels. A pilot batch of S9 SUVs had been submitted for certification; full-cycle series production was expected in September.

Project investment: 1.1 billion rubles.
Industrial Development Fund loan: 850 million rubles.

The pickup assembly milestone

The stamping launch followed a different milestone at the UAZ industrial site. On 30 January 2025, Sollers reported starting full-cycle production of its four-wheel-drive ST6 and ST8 pickups. A new 130-metre welding line and chassis-assembly line had entered service, while painting and assembly facilities were substantially modernised. Pickup body assembly shared production with the UAZ vehicle family; final assembly used a dedicated new line. Production was integrated with logistics, manufacturing and quality-management systems. The group expected these Ulyanovsk-built pickups to reach dealers during the first quarter of 2025.

Earlier transmission localisation

A separate component programme had advanced in Zavolzhye. On 4 July 2024, Sollers reported fitting Argo light trucks with a locally produced six-speed manual gearbox. The transmission plant operated in the Zavolzhsky Motor Plant industrial park in Nizhny Novgorod Oblast. The gearbox was paired with a two-litre, 130-horsepower diesel made in Yelabuga. Sollers described a new line with capacity of up to 50,000 units annually and rapid changeover between versions. Russian-developed software controlled the assembly conveyor, and a pilot batch had been produced that February.

The gearbox range expands

On 2 April 2025, Sollers Transmission Production announced serial manufacture of three additional manual-gearbox models at Zavolzhye. The new six-speed units were intended for petrol-powered ST6 and ST8 pickups and Atlant vans with a 1.9-litre diesel. The company said these additions expanded the range to seven gearbox modifications through flexible production and rapid line reconfiguration. It also planned to equip rear-wheel-drive diesel UAZ Profi Polutorka vehicles scheduled for production that April. Investment in the broader Zavolzhsky site-development programme since 2023 had exceeded two billion rubles.