During a meeting in Tehran on Monday, Ikarus Chairman Gábor Széles and City IMD Chief Mohsen Ahmadi signed the initial agreement, the local firm reported in a press release on its website.
Later and in an interview with Hungarian newspaper Magyar Hírlap, Széles said, “Ikarus plans to export 1,000 buses to Iran. The country is a key element to Ikarusʼs export strategy”.
The meeting between City IMD and Ikarus officials was also attended by Economy Minister Masoud Karbasian and his Hungarian counterpart Mihály Varga heading a business delegation to Tehran, Financial Tribune reported.
Varga said the Eximbank of Hungary has allocated a $162 million credit line for the project.
According to City IMD director, talks are underway between Ikarus and local automotive companies over the prospect of producing buses in Iran.
“Mr. Széles and I visited some production plants of local bus makers including Iran Khodro Diesel, SAIPA Diesel and Zamyad. A joint production agreement is likely to be forged between Ikarus and an Iranian company,” Ahmadi further said.
Ikarus has a long history of presence in Iran and several of its models were popular in the country during the 1990s. But collaboration ended after the imposition of economic sanctions on Iran due to its nuclear program.