MOSCOW, February 14 (RIA Novosti) - Russian car manufacturer Severstal Avto and one of Japan's leading truck producers, Isuzu, have signed a deal to begin the production of Isuzu trucks in Russia.

According to Severstal Avto's news release, the two companies will be producing medium-duty Isuzu NQR 71 trucks, with a carrying capacity of about five metric tons, and heavy-duty Isuzu CXZ 51 trucks, with a carrying capacity of about 20 metric tons.

Production will begin in mid 2006 at Severstal Avto's subsidiary, the UAZ car plant in the city of Ulyanovsk on the Volga River.