Russia's Kamaz, U.S.' Cummins establish joint venture

MOSCOW, January 24 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's leading truck manufacturer Kamaz and U.S. power generation equipment and engine manufacturer Cummins agreed to establish a joint venture to produce 120-175-horsepower B series engines for the Russian market, the Kamaz press service said Tuesday.

Cummins Kama's authorized capital is $20 million, each company owning 50% of the total.

Engine production will be situated at Kamaz' sites in the city of Naberezhnye Chelny, in the Volga Republic of Tatarstan. The production program envisions the introduction of modern environmental standards and two stages of project implementation. The two companies will also develop maintenance services.

"Thus, Cummins will obtain access to the biggest branded dealer's and maintenance network in Russia and the CIS, while Kamaz dealers will improve engine servicing technology," the press service said.

A Cummins representative said the company intended to seriously work in Russia for a long time.

Kamaz is in eighth place among world companies in terms of diesel engine production. The company's earnings in 2005 were 44.5 billion rubles ($1.6 billion).

Cummins' sales in 2004 were $8.4 billion.