PM Putin took part in the opening of a Nissan plant in St. Petersburg. Visiting the assembly-room, painting and quality control sections, he found himself behind the wheel of the first car off the production line.
While passing near the assembly-line that welds engines to body frames, Putin asked if the engines are made in Russia and learned that at the moment they are imported from Japan.
Following the excursion, Putin was offered a drive of the first car off the production line. He took the driver’s seat and gave a ride to Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn.
“The car is good, a quality one and pretty too,” Putin said after his little test drive.
He also stated the government is ready to support investment in future high-tech projects.
“That’s more than $200mln of investment: 750 new jobs. And there is also the possibility of increasing production, as the company uses just one third of the space provided for it by the government,” Putin concluded.