French Automaker Renault Halts Moscow Operations, Downgrades Financial Outlook

Employees of the Avtoframos automobile plant assemble a Renault Logan model in Moscow. Russia is one of the hardest-hit by the global economic crisis, causing the country to plunge into its first recession since 1998. Alexander Nemenov/AFP/Getty Images

French automaker Renault Group has announced it is suspending operations in Moscow as of March 23 amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The company’s board of directors met earlier on March 23 and approved the decision to pull the plug on activities at its Russian manufacturing plant amid international pressure and the threat of a boycott.

“Renault Group activities in its manufacturing plant in Moscow are suspended as of today,” the company said.

The Epoch Times has contacted a Renault spokesperson for comment.

Renault also has a 69 percent stake in Russian automobile manufacturing company AvtoVaz and said it is “assessing the available options, taking into account the current environment.”

The French vehicle maker had recently released its financial report for 2021 in which AvtoVaz’s revenues were shown to have grown by 10.4 percent to 2.9 billion euros ($3.1 billion).

The multinational automobile manufacturer said March 23 that it was “acting responsibly towards its 45,000 employees in Russia” and has already implemented “the necessary measures to comply with international sanctions.”

Due to the suspension of its Moscow operations, Renault also downgraded its financial outlook, saying it was looking at a “group operating margin of around 3 percent versus at least 4 percent previously.”

Renault’s decision came after the company was criticized by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for failing to suspend its operations in Moscow.

The French government currently owns a 15 percent stake in Renault.

During a 15-minute video address to the French parliament on March 23, Zelenskyy urged French companies, including Renault, to “quit the Russian market” amid what Russian President Vladimir Putin has branded a “special military operation” in Ukraine.

“Renault, Auchan, Leroy Merlin, and others must stop sponsoring the Russian war machine,” Zelenskyy said. “All companies must remember once and for all that values are worth more than profit, especially profit on blood.”

Renault had previously suspended production at its Moscow plant in February 2022 after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, at the time citing a “forced change in existing logistic route.”

However, it resumed production again later in March 2022.

In a March 23 social media post before Renault’s announcement, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba called for a global boycott of Renault products, saying the company “refuses to pull out of Russia.”

“Mistakes must come with a price, especially when repeated. I call on customers and businesses around the globe to boycott Group Renault,” Kuleba said.

Later that day, Kuleba wrote on Twitter that he welcomed Renault’s decision to cease its operations in Moscow, calling it a “responsible” move “against the backdrop of Russia’s ongoing barbaric aggression against Ukraine.”