Tehran, Iran, August 30
By Mehdi Sepahvand –- Trend:
The Iranian government has approved $2 billion finance to go into wagon making.
There are four wagon makers in Iran which need the money to stay operational, government spokesman Mohammad Baqer Nobakht told reporters in Tehran.
He cited environmental concerns for the allocation of funds, adding that the $2 billion will help produce 2,000 wagons to be used on urban railways.
A deal by the Islamic Republic Railways to buy about 500 wagons from Russia was revoked early June by the General Inspection Office of Iran, which announced home-made wagons were prioritized over foreign-made.
A January 20 report said that a private company in Iran had lease-purchased 500 cargo wagons from Russia.
Deputy Minister of Transport of Iran Mohsen Pourseyyed Aghaei in reference to the contract had said then that the most suitable way for Iranian companies to acquire wagons is lease-purchasing.
Iran’s transport sector has remained underdeveloped due to mismanagement as well as international sanctions.
The imports were discussed at a time when Iran is itself a producer of wagons. A May 16 report said the major Iranian wagon maker Pars Wagon was operating at 25 percent of its full capacity because of scanty liquidity with railway companies and few orders from customers.