Iran Khodro, has announced that Daimler AG, is exploring a return to Iran with its trucks, vans and buses, and may sign a deal within months.
Speaking with reporters in Tehran, Hashem Yekkeh Zareh, CEO of Iran Khodro Company, said: “Mercedes-Benz is an old partner for Iran Khodro, and it has announced its willingness and readiness to work with us.”
He declined to comment on the financial scope of any partnership with Mercedes parent Daimler, but revealed that Daimler could sign a deal with Iran Khodro within as little as three months.
“The position for us in terms of trucks and cars and our broad portfolio is a good one,” added Bodo Uebber, Daimler CFO, speaking in London. “It’s too early to say how far that can be, but of course we are in contact with our business partners to have discussions how to restart.”
Daimler pulled back on business in Iran in 2010 amid rising political tensions, at the time ceding a 30% stake in a diesel-engine joint venture with Iran Khodro and withdrawing plans to export three-axle trucks.
The German company joins a growing list of Western companies, including French and Italian parties, seeking to reassert themselves in Iran after the easing of the US-instigated economic sanctions.
It is estimated that Iran’s auto market could average 1.7 million vehicles in annual sales in the long term, according to estimates from IHS Automotive.
Should exports return to the pre-sanction levels of a decade ago, it could mean as much as an additional $4.9bn in revenue for German companies, Deutsche Bank analysts noted in a July report.
