OREANDA-NEWS. July 14, 2009. The Russian machine-building holding company, Concern Tractor Plants (CTP), expects to hold talks before the end of 2009 on tractor production in Nigeria, a senior company executive said.

"Before the new year, we should switch to concrete talks on an assembly facility in Nigeria," said Albert Bakov, the holding companys first vice president.

Tractors Plants is Russias largest producer of equipment and spare parts for light and heavy engineering and off-road machinery. CTP occupies leading positions in key sectors in Russia, former Soviet republics and worldwide.

Its products are used in the oil and gas industry, agriculture, construction and road-building as well as in mining and the metallurgical, transport and defense industries.

Bakov, who is also chairman of the Russia-Nigeria Business Council, said the talks were expected to begin in September, when the data on the African countys requirements for tractors would be available.

Bakov said it was premature to talk about the projects cost. "We do not yet know the volume of the market; and the requirements of the market are unknown. I believe we will have such information in September."

Bakov said the holding company was planning to build new facilities instead of using existing production capability.