Tehran hosted its First International Symposium of New Technologies in Hybrid and Electric Cars on Tuesday, Asre Khodro reported.
The much vaunted event was held at the Iran Research Institute of Petroleum Industry and hosted specialist electric car panels and also displayed and tested the performance of hybrid and electric cars. The aim of the event was to officially promote new technology in the Iranian automobile market.
The symposium was organized with the help of the Department of Environment and the Transportation and Fuel Management Committee.
The spotlight was on Diar Khodro, the country's first producer of fully electric vehicles.
The company manufactured its first EV in 2014, which was inaugurated by Massoumeh Ebtekar, head of DOE. The production line of the vehicle officially started this year.
Diar Khodro presented two of its new EVs, the Sabrina E150 and E200. It was announced at the event that the Sabrinas would be added to the country's taxi fleet with the support of the government and other affiliated organizations later this year.
The company's representative also announced that the R&D for the production of another EV called "Senova" is complete and the vehicle will be produced in the near future.
Hybrid cars have had a slow take-up in Iran over the past 12 months. Last year President Hassan Rouhani issued a new decree supporting the use of green fuel vehicles while participating in an event organized by Iran Khodro to promote their new electric vehicle.
Currently Diar Khodro has begun selling a Chinese-built electric car, with another company named Jahanro selling small electric vehicles known as 'Tazzari' produced in Italy.
The current administration has taken great pains to push the use of alternative technology in the auto sector, including the removal of import tariffs on hybrid cars, as a way to incentivize local car companies to move on with alternative fuel production vehicles.
The symposium was attended by representatives from National Transportation and Fuel Management Organization, National Standard Organization, municipalities, Bus and Taxi Cab Unions, Automotive Engineering Research Center, Fuel and Environment Research Institute, Iranian Energy Efficiency Organization, and other domestic and international automakers.
