From January 1, 2008, Russia introduced Euro 3 exhaust emission standards, prohibiting production or imports of vehicles that fail to meet the requirements. Euro 3 standards were introduced in the European Union in 2000.
"The transition was difficult for the auto industry but everything necessary has been done, and from January 1 we switched completely to the production of vehicles in accordance with the Euro 3 standard," Igor Korovkin said.
The executive said the adoption of the Euro 3 standard raised prices by an average of 200 euros (about $300) for cars and 1,000 euros ($1,490) for trucks.
Korovkin said Russian auto producers were now preparing for transition to the cleaner Euro 4 emission standards, adopted by EU states in 2005.
