2004 became the year of further expansion of the product range of the "Lutsk Automobile Plant" OJSC - starting in August, Lutsk automakers will produce "Niva" off-road vehicles. \n The expansion of production became possible thanks to an agreement with the Russian company "AvtoVAZ". The first vehicle kits from Russia will arrive at LuAZ at the end of July, and already in August the assembly of Volyn "Nivas" will begin. In total, by the end of 2004, it is planned to manufacture 1,500 units of this model. \n According to estimates by specialists (LuAZ representatives), there is significant demand for "Nivas" in Ukraine, and the market capacity for automobiles of this class is 3.5-4 thousand units per year. Already now, about 500 orders for these automobiles have been received by dealers and distributors of the Lutsk Automobile Plant in Ukraine. Given such popularity of "Nivas" in Ukraine, already next year Volyn automobile manufacturers plan to assemble no fewer than 2,000 VAZs of this model. \n The popularity of "Nivas" in Ukraine is explained by such characteristics of this automobile as reliability, high off-road capability, adaptability to Ukrainian roads, as well as the quite acceptable price of this off-road vehicle. According to estimates by LuAZ representatives, the price of a "Niva" produced in Lutsk will be about 7,000 dollars. \n