TEHRAN, March 11, 2008 (AFP) – Iran’s joint venture with French auto giant Renault on Tuesday slashed the forecast for production of its Logan vehicle, blaming US-led banking restrictions against Tehran over its nuclear drive.
“Irankhodro’s commitment by the end of the Iranian year (March 19) was 51,000 units but it will have 13,000 made by then,” the company’s director in charge of production of the Logan, Mohammad Hossein Faghih, told AFP.
“Some of our manufacturers had problems with imports of primary materials that were under sanctions. We try to use other ways to overcome this problem which has delayed the delivery of our commitments,” Faghih said.
In punishment for its defiance of major powers’ demand that it halts its sensitive nuclear activities, the United States has pressured European allies to cut banking operations with Tehran to a minimum.
Tehran has been also slapped by three sets of UN Security Council sanctions which restricts some dual-purpose equipment which could be also used in nuclear industry.
The car, whose brand name is Tondar-90 — “Thunder” in Persian — is being manufactured by two Iranian carmakers, Irankhodro and Saipa as part of a joint venture with Renault.
Many Iranians who made downpayments for the new car last March are still waiting for their vehicle to be delivered.
Last June, the joint venture forecast production would reach 10,000 a month by now.
“Irankhodro is drafting a new plan to partly take responsibility for procurement whose supervision, supply and management is 100 percent in the hands of Renault Pars,” Faghih said.
Irankhodro managing director Manouchehr Manteghi played down the significance of sanctions and stressed that the company will find a way out if the situation becomes tougher.
“We will continue what we have had with the French partner and if any problem occurs we will come up with a solution,” Manteghi told AFP.
The project signed back in March 2004 had a chequered history and was held up by a disagreement on whether the cars could be exported from Iran to markets where Renault is already present.
The Tondar venture, with a total investment of some 300 million dollars, is the largest investment by the French motor manufacturer in Iran since the Islamic revolution of 1979.