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Uzbekistan may begin production of electric, autonomous cars

Business Materials 1 June 2018 10:51 (UTC +04:00)

Baku, Azerbaijan, June 1

By Fikret Dolukhanov – Trend:

Uzavtosanoat is exploring possibility of organizing production of electric cars in Uzbekistan, Uzbek media reported citing Chairman of the Board of the Company Umidjan Salimov.

Salimov said that electric cars are the future of the automotive industry.

“We created a special group at the Innovation Center at the Polytechnic University of Turin in Tashkent, which deals with introduction and organization of production of electric cars. We are working on that,” the head of Uzavtosanoat emphasized.

He noted that production of electric cars is a new direction for the company, and Uzavtosanoat is currently developing a concept for the production.

According to Salimov, the document will be ready within two months. In addition, negotiations are underway with potential partners manufacturing electric cars, which are to be completed within six months.

Salimov also said that samples of Chevrolet Bolt and Chinese JAC electric cars will be delivered to Tashkent for testing in the Summer 2018. They are planned to be run around Uzbekistan from Andijan region to Karakalpakstan.

Uzavtosanoat is also discussing creation of infrastructure necessary for electric vehicles with the Uzbekenergo company.

“An electric car is a completely different vehicle, if you compare it with conventional cars. Operating costs are eight times lower from the point of view of a consumer. It is also cheaper in terms of maintenance,” Salimov said.

The head of Uzavtosanoat added that the Polytechnic University of Turin in Tashkent is currently designing the first autonomous car. The project is financed by Uzavtosanoat jointly with two Russian partners.

“This one is a very complex project, but we have already started work in this direction,” he said.

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