Iranian specialists have started to reverse engineer electric vehicles to master the technologies used in building the modern cars.
According to Alireza Daemi, the Industries Ministry's deputy for planning and economic affairs, the engineers will be studying Nissan's electric model Leaf, a few of which were imported by Iran.
"This will help propel the development of EVs and solar cars in Iran," IRNA quoted Daemi as saying.
The official added that the sixth five-year economic development plan (2016-21) targets replacing a portion of vehicles running on fossil fuels or thermal engines with green vehicles. This will help reduce air pollution and cut down energy consumption.
Yousef Sarafraz, CEO of East Azarbaijan Electric Power Distribution Company, had earlier said charging stations are being designed and will be set up around the city.
He explained that the company has purchased Nissan's Leaf to bring its technology to Iran and to use local potentials for setting up the charging stations needed for the vehicles.
The Leaf was introduced in Japan and the United States in December 2010, followed by various European countries and Canada in 2011. As of December 2015, the Nissan Leaf is the world's all-time bestselling highway-capable all-electric car.
However, the official did not note if they have prior permission from the Japanese automaker to reverse engineer the parts needed to produce the vehicle.
Financial Tribune reached out to Nissan and its previous local production partner Pars Khodro for comments on the reverse engineering of their proprietary technologies, but neither was able to comment at the time of going to print.
