Mazda becomes first automaker to lose right to reclaim Russian assets after exit
Japan's Mazda Motor has lost the right to repurchase its assets in Russia, Reuters reported on Nov. 3, citing Mazda's former Russian partner Sollers.
The decision makes Mazda the first foreign automaker to permanently forfeit such rights after leaving the Russian market following Moscow's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
After the invasion, most Western and Asian car manufacturers quit Russia, selling assets to local companies for symbolic sums while securing repurchase options in case of future reentry.
Mazda sold its 50% stake in a Vladivostok joint venture with Sollers in 2022 for one euro, reserving the right to buy it back within three years.
Sollers said no proposal or request had been made by Mazda, adding, "Under the current conditions, we do not see any need for it."
The Vladivostok plant, launched in 2012, originally produced Mazda CX-5 and CX-9 crossovers and Mazda 6 sedans. After the withdrawal, the facility began manufacturing Sollers-branded pickups and, in 2023, was converted to assemble tourist buses using Chinese components.
Russian Deputy Prime Minister Denis Manturov said in September that the Vladivostok factory's operations had been "successfully restarted," suggesting Mazda was unlikely to reclaim its share.
Other major automakers, including Renault, Mercedes-Benz, and Hyundai, also abandoned their Russian operations under similar circumstances but maintained repurchase clauses.
Mazda's case signals the Kremlin's tightening grip on assets once owned by foreign firms and the diminishing likelihood of their return to the Russian market.
Tim Zadorozhnyy
