The agreement on manufacturing French trucks in Novouralsk-based AMUR car factory that Sverdlovsk Region signed with Renault Trucks management have led to some unexpected consequences. The region’s Minister for International and Foreign Economic Relations Alexander Kharlov announced today that Renault’s workers, supported by the trade union, started protesting against the French company’s decision.

‘The news on the recent agreement reached France, and the trade unions resented: they cannot understand why Russian enterprises are getting orders when France is struggling with overwhelming unemployment. So, we have to be rather careful with information,’ the minister said at a conference on the industrial Urals’ strategic development in Yekaterinburg.

The agreement in question is the result of a series of negotiations Sverdlovsk Region’s Ministry for International and Foreign Economic Relations held with Renault Trucks. In March 2010, the French automobile concern agreed to a joint venture that would deal in assembling intermediate Midlum trucks on the premises of AMUR car factory.

At first, the Russian car plant is expected to assemble 10,000 trucks a year. In addition, some of AMUR’s automobiles will use French parts and components. Later on, the parties involved might consider producing some of the car parts immediately at AMUR.