Tara EV Set for March Launch

Davoud Khosravi, however, stressed that the EV infrastructure should be established first before embarking on its mass production.  

The Tara EV pilot, jointly produced by IKCO and Jetco, was unveiled in the current fiscal year’s fourth month (June 22-July 22). 

The production of electric vehicles was one of the unfulfilled dreams of domestic automakers, which may come true in the next few months. 

Iran Khodro Industrial Group has shown more interest in launching one of its products with electric motors and drivetrains than other domestic automakers. The company had introduced vehicles such as Dena EV or Rana with electric motors, but none of them reached mass production. 

In its latest initiatives, IKCO has announced the production of an EV prototype for Tara. 

“Converting the gasoline-to-electric vehicle platform and designing a specialized EV platform are two known ways of producing an EV and Iran follows the same procedure,” Khosravi was quoted as saying by the news portal of Car.ir. 

Jetco’s CEO added that designing a new specialized platform will be expensive and said, “If the electric car is designed and built by modifying the existing platforms for gas-powered cars, it will not cost billions of dollars. This is one of the methods used by Western automakers such as Peugeot, Renault and East Asian automakers to design and manufacture EVs.” 

He added that this company started producing an EV on IKCO’s latest vehicle platform for Tara, with the aim of reducing production costs by using domestic components.  

According to Khosravi, the car’s powertrain, including electric motors, battery pack, drive, charger and converter, have been designed by Jetco’s teams and most of the parts are produced domestically. 

“Although some small parts, especially electronic components, are supplied by foreign companies, domestic component manufacturers have placed the production of these parts on their agenda,” he said. 

He added that EVs also need infrastructures like fast charging stations that is not the responsibility of EV automakers. 

“EV charging stations should be established nationwide to charge electric cars in 20 minutes. Also, it is necessary to create conditions for owners to charge electric vehicles in their personal parking lots in 5-8 hours,” he said. 

The Jetco chief stated that charging stations should be equipped with electricity generators for support during electricity consumption's peak hours and outages. He added that component producers need financial support for assisting EV mass production, which can be provided by banks.

Jetco produces concept cars and has shown that domestic engineers are able to produce EVs, but the infrastructures for mass production should be provided by related organizations.

"Currently, battery packs account for a noticeable share in EV prices and about 35-45% of an electric vehicles' total price pertain to batteries. In every country, the EV buyer receives government subsidies that cover part of the total price. Incentives such as free parking lots and discounts on insurance and taxes for EVS are also provided," Khosravi said.

First Solar-Powered EV Charging Station

MAPNA Group, the domestic engineering and energy giant, had unveiled its first solar-powered electric vehicle charging station in Fardis County, Alborz Province, on July 18, fulfilling its promise to promote green means of transportation.

The station has been developed by MAPNA’s Electric and Control Engineering and Manufacturing Company (MECO), IRNA reported.

The solar-powered station has a capacity of about 4 kilowatts-hour and is connected to an EV charger with a 3.7-kWh discharge capability.

For the first time in Iran, the station can assist in achieving V2G and V2H technologies, meaning that it can either store the extra electricity, or feed it into the household or national grid.

The terms V2G and V2H stand for “vehicle to grid” and “vehicle to home” respectively. 

These technologies enable energy to be pushed back to the power grid from the battery of an electric car. 

Drivers, for example, can utilize solar energy to charge their automobiles while at work, then return home at the end of the day and feed the excess power back into their household grid.

Adel Dameshqi, an official with MECO, said the station is designed and developed by eight local experts with an outlay of 2 billion rials ($8,000).

With the rise in demand for electric vehicles, the need for a reliable charging infrastructure increases to accommodate the rapid public adoption of this means of transportation, he added.

In recent years, MAPNA has prioritized the development of EV infrastructure following the government policy to shift from fossil fuels to green energies, and in line with the global trend toward curbing air pollution.

The company is working on establishing EV charging stations in all Iranian provinces, as a vital infrastructure for promoting zero emission vehicles.

According to MAPNA CEO Abbas Aliabadi, Mashhad is the second city to house an electric charging station following the pioneering launch in Tehran.

Iran’s first EV charging station was set up at Tehran’s Milad Tower in May 2019 by MAPNA.