What is "avtovaz"

AvtoVAZ is the Russian automobile manufacturer formerly known as VAZ: Volzhsky Avtomobilny Zavod (ВАЗ, Во́лжский автомоби́льный заво́д, or Volga Automobile Plant), but better known to the world under the trade name Lada. The current company name is "AvtoVAZ".

AvtoVAZ's majority owner is Alliance Rostec Auto BV with 74.5%, which is a joint venture of the Renault-Nissan Alliance with 67.1% and Russian company Rostec with the remainder, which means that the Renault-Nissan-Alliance controls a two-third majority of the majority owner, but owns just 49.9895% of AvtoVAZ' shares.

AvtoVAZ produces nearly one million cars a year, including the Kalina family (hatchback, wagon and crossover), Lada Granta family (sedan and liftback), Lada Priora family (sedan, hatchback, wagon and coupe), Lada 4x4 (former Lada "Niva") and Lada Largus ( Automobile Dacia platform), as well as the cars of Renault-Nissan alliance brands: Renault Logan II, Renault Sandero II, Datsun on-Do and Datsun mi-Do (the Nissan sub-brand), and Nissan Almera New.

The VAZ factory is the largest car manufacturer in Russia and Eastern Europe and one of the largest in the world, with over of production lines; it is unique in that most of the components for the cars are made in-house.