Azerbaijan, Baku, Jan. 26 / Trend F.Mehdi/
The largest car manufacturing factory in Iran, with a projected annual output of 5 million cars, is being established in Iran, ISNA reported.
The factory's output will be higher than the total outputs of the two current main carmakers, namely Iran Khodro and Saipa.
The new factory will produce the first national Iranian car, which will hit the market by March 2015 at an estimated price of $10,000-$12,000.
Iran's vehicle manufacturers are faced with both rising production costs and lacking some details as to how to manufacture cars after the giant international auto companies left Iran because of sanctions aimed to curb the country's disputed nuclear program.
These include Italian Fiat, German General Motors and its French partner PSA Peugeot Citroen, South Korean Hyundai and the Japanese Toyota Motor Corporation, etc. Iran's major car producer Iran Khodro which had been a partner of France's Peugeot since 1989, had to close some production units.
Meanwhile, deputy manager of Iranian Khodro Company, Hossein Najjarpour, said last week that IKCO has become self-sufficient in manufacturing the vehicle.
Following the US-generated sanctions, Iran Khodro had some problems providing Peugeot 206 parts.
IKCO has restarted manufacturing Peugeot 206 from the beginning of current Iranian calendar month (December 21, 2012).
The company plans to increase the line's production capacity up to 300 vehicles per day by the end of current Iranian year (March 20), Najjarpour said.
Saying that IKCO currently produces 2000 vehicles per day, he went on to note that the number would be increased to 2,500 by the end of current Iranian year.
Iranian car manufacturers produced 72,845 vehicles in the 9th month of current Iranian calendar year (November 21 - December 21).
The amount shows a 1.5 percent increase compared to its preceding month's figure of 71,732 vehicles, the state IRNA News Agency reported.
On Nov. 27, 2012, the ISNA news agency reported that several car companies in Iran halted their production, while according to ISNA report the auto production dropped by 66 percent in September compared to last years' figures.