Iran Khodro to Export Cars to Belarus

Iran Khodro is set to export 5,000 cars to Belarus within the next five years, the minister of industries announced at the closing ceremony of the 14th Iran-Belarus Economic Commission which was held at the Trade Promotion Organization in Tehran on Tuesday.

“During the current fiscal, 1,000 Dena and Dena+ cars [made by Iran Khodro] will be exported as semi-knocked-down (SKD) kits to Belarus,” Mohammad Shariatmadari was quoted as saying on the TPO website. “The number will increase to 5,000 cars in the coming five years,” he added.

Car exports are part of a cooperation agreement signed by Shariatmadari and his Belarusian counterpart Vitaly Vovk.

In Feb 2017, IKCO was granted Eurasian Conformity certification (aka EAC Mark) for its cars, allowing the company to develop new export markets and revive its presence in the northern Commonwealth of Independent States.

The certificate issued by the Eurasian Economic Union indicates that the products conform to all technical regulations of the Eurasian Customs Union assessment procedures. It is allocated to six sedans produced by IKCO, including Soren ELX, Samand ELX, Soren Turbo, Runna, Dena and Peugeot 206 SD. Seemingly the company has been able to acquire a certificate for its upgraded version of Dena, namely the Dena +.

IKCO can now sell in CIS markets with custom exemptions, which should make its prices competitive against cheaper Chinese vehicles.

 Electric Bus Production

During the meeting the Belarusian manufacturer of electric public transport vehicles Belkamunmash signed a trilateral deal with two Iranian private companies, namely Sam Sabz Khodro and Shahab Khodro to produce electric buses in Iran.

Sabz Khodro chairman of the board, Mohammad Samsum says, “The first buses will be imported before March and the production lines will be launched in summer.”

“The 12 meter fully electric buses have a range of 20-40 kilometers with five minutes of charging,” Samsum was quoted as saying.

The bus is a three-axle low-floor linked type of vehicle with passenger capacity of 153 and can reach a speed of 60 km/h.

In addition to Belarus, buses manufactured by Belkommunmash are used in over 40 cities in Russia, Ukraine, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Mongolia, Moldova, Argentina, Colombia, and Serbia.

Collaboration between Iranian and Belarusian auto companies are not limited to the auto sector. Earlier in Sep. 2017, Azhitechs, an Iranian commercial vehicle producer and the official representative of Belarus’s Maz Trucks, said it will deliver 400 CNG-powered city buses to Tehran and Tabriz municipalities.