Business news

MINSK, 31 March (BelTA) – The Belarusian automobile engineering company MAZ will design buses with a reduced width of the body for Vietnam. There are plans to set up a joint venture in Vietnam soon to assemble this MAZ 208 model, representatives of the company told BelTA.

MAZ has to design narrower buses because the Vietnamese technical regulations limit the width of the body to 2.5 meters while MAZ buses are at least 50mm broader. The engineers will have to come up with a narrower frame for the MAZ 208 in addition to making the structure lighter so that Belarusian buses could be sold in Vietnam. The buses will be powered by Mercedes engines. The first few MAZ 208 assembly kits will be shipped to Vietnam in March-April.

MAZ is ready to make about 1,000 buses per annum in Vietnam. However, the local legislation requires producing three times as many. “We are now trying to find a compromise with the relevant government agencies of Vietnam so that we could reduce the output figures by at least 400-500 vehicles. According to our experience, not every city has such a significant demand for buses with a large carrying capacity,” explained OAO MAZ representatives.