‘Iran automobile industry eyes foreign markets in 10-year vision’

Iran’s minister of industry, mine and trade says the country’s automobile manufacturing industry has targeted overseas markets in its 10-year perspective plan.

Speaking to reporters after a tour of Iran Khodro Industrial Group in Tehran on Tuesday, Mohammad Reza Nematzadeh noted that according to the 10-year plan, the country must manufacture three million vehicles per year, one-third of which will be exported to overseas markets.

“At present, we are in negotiation with a number of creditable automobile companies in the world and in all negotiations we emphasize that 30 percent of Iran’s domestic production is to be exported to global market,” he added.

Nematzadeh stated that Iranian carmakers are currently producing 1.5 to 1.6 million vehicles per annum all of which are manufactured according to national standards.

“If domestically produced cars lack national standards, they will not receive a license plate. Therefore, we are upgrading our standards from Euro 3 to Euro 4, and if suitable fuel is provided, carmakers can upgrade standard of domestically produced vehicles to Euro 5 and Euro 6,” the minister added.

Nematzadeh said Iran’s automobile manufacturing companies are currently not state-run and are managed by the private sector.

“Promoting healthy competition in this sector will not only encourage people to buy more cars, but also enable the country to export one-third of its production to other countries,” he noted.

The minister also stated that at present most spare parts needed by Iran’s car industry are produced inside the country.

He also advised Iranian carmakers to keep themselves technically up-to-date in order to give enough motivation to people to buy their products.