Roads Minister Invites Chinese Firms to Invest in Iran’s Transport Sector

More than 200 representatives from China’s private transportation and infrastructure sectors attended the Housing, Transportation and Logistics Investment Summit in Beijing on Tuesday.

In this event, Iranian officials invited the Chinese to boost cooperation in the financing and implementation of Iranian projects.

Iran's Minister of Roads and Urban Development Abbas Akhoundi was a keynote speaker at the event, along with CEO of Islamic Republic of Iran Railways Mohsen Pourseyyed-Aqaei and the deputy head of Construction and Development of Transportation Infrastructures Company, Ali Zakeri, IRNA reported.

In the aviation sector, Iran said it needs 500 passenger planes within the next 10 years.

Akhoundi noted that Iran would be willing to meet part of its fleet requirements through Chinese regional planes.

“If they [Chinese companies] can finance our purchases via our preferred channels, they are welcome to participate,” he said.

In the road sector, the minister said Iran is planning to import 65,000 trucks to replace its dilapidated fleet.

As for the rail sector, Akhoundi pointed to Iran's need for purchasing 2,000 passenger and 20,000 freight cars, stressing that “for Iran, financing is the most critical issue” at the moment.

Addressing the summit, Zakeri said Iran is planning to increase the share of rail in public transportation from 4% to 18% by 2025.

In the cargo sector, the figure is projected to rise to 30% from the current 10%.

Zakeri added that there are 13,500 kilometers of railroad in Iran, noting that 2,000 kilometers are scheduled to be double-tracked.

Accompanied by a delegation of business executives and government officials, Akhoundi arrived in Beijing on Monday.

Soon after his arrival, he met with his Chinese counterpart, Li Xiaopeng, in Beijing to discuss avenues of expanding cooperation in the transportation sector.

Financing Iran’s railroad projects, development of transit corridors passing through Iran, implementation of Tehran-Mashhad and Tehran-Isfahan rail projects and expansion of Iran’s southern Shahid Rajaei Port were among the main topics discussed by the two sides.

During his four-day stay, Akhoundi also met Chinese Minister of Housing and Urban-Rural Construction Chen Zhenggao and executives of the Import-Export Bank of China and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.