Page 55 - IRANRptJun20

SAIPA ‘set to launch delayed sedan’ and return to Tehran Stock Exchange
brand by the Chinese parent company.
Safe Khodro said it would continue to ramp up production while also heeding pandemic social distancing advice issued by the National Headquarters for Combatting Coronavirus.
The company has been given licence plate permission. Emissions tests have been completed.
SAIPA, which recently overtook Iran Khodro (IKCO) to become Iran’s largest carmaker by production volume, has started a test run of its new mid-sized sedan, the Shahin (or “Shahin Falcon”), ​Asbe Bokhar​ magazine has reported.
The automaker, meanwhile, has also announced that it is set to re-list on the Tehran Stock Exchange (TSE),​ which has seen ​immense gains​ in recent weeks. SAIPA said on its website on May 3 that it had begun a process of recapitalising and that once it met requirements “it would reopen the SAIPA symbol” on the stock market.
The Shahin sedan (which previously went by the name “Roham”) was initially showcased in 2018. It is the latest model to be developed by the company (full name, Société Anonyme Iranienne de Production des Automobiles), which was again working with France’s Citroen on the assembly and development of automobiles until the reimposition of heavy sanctions on Iran by the US in 2018 caused that arrangement to end.
Asbe Bokhar​ quoted a source at SAIPA as saying that “15 units [of the new sedan] will roll off the production line this week as part of an initial run” before a ramping up of production in coming weeks.
The Shahin is the first vehicle from the company to be built on a new mega-platform called the SP100, set to be the basis of several sedans, hatchbacks and crossover models.
Backed by the SP100 platform, SAIPA is now considering pursuing a greater presence in the Eurasian markets of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS), as the car meets Euro5 emissions standards and possibly EuroNCAP crash test standards.
The manufacturer has a presence in regional countries including Azerbaijan, Iraq and Syria with its low-cost vehicles including the now 30-year-old Kia Pride model initially made under licence from the Korean brand.
The company has not yet announced the price of the vehicle; however, previous estimates placed its at $8,000 for the basic model.
9.2.3​ Aviation corporate news
Approval granted for new Iranian airline but operator’s certificate awaited
An approval for a new Iranian airline has been granted by the Iran Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), but the carrier is yet to receive its operator’s certificate (AOC), Aviation Iran reported on May 17.
Iran plays host to several small airlines, all of them created for domestic flights. Aeroplane stock, however, remains difficult to come by and is invariably ad hoc. Fleets entirely depend on who will sell Iran planes and components—sellers are deterred by sanctions put in place by the US. Association of Iranian Airlines secretary Masoud Asadi-Samani said the new airline owner was a former senior member of the ICAO, but he did not disclose the person’s name.
Asadi-Samani was cited as saying: "A new airline has obtained an agreement in principle from the national aviation organisation, but has not yet received the AOC from this organisation."
The airline has not yet been able to import aircraft, he added.
55​ IRAN Country Report June 2020 www.intellinews.com