Business

Azerbaijan to begin car exports

The Iranian-Azerbaijani car manufacturer Khazar has announced its intention to begin the export of its vehicles to Russia and other CIS countries from 2019. Veronika Allahverdiyeva, a representative of Azermash, the Azerbaijani partner in the joint venture, confirmed that  the cars would be available in Russia next year during the Moscow International Automobile Salon.

“The capacity of the Khazar plant will eventually around 10,000 cars per year,” Ms Allahverdiyeva told journalists, without revealing how many vehicles – primarily intended for domestic markets – it hoped to export.

The first batch of the jointly manufactured cars, which are being sold under the Khazar brand name and which meet Euro 5 pollution standards, went on sale in Azerbaijan in June. Prices range from around 5800 – 7000 US dollars. The majority of spare parts are currently made in Iran, but Azermash wants to bring production to Azerbaijan by 2019.

Khazar’s plant, located in the Neftchala Industrial Park in south eastern Azerbaijan, began producing cars on April 5. Khazar is a joint venture between Iranian car maker Khodro and AzEuroCar, a subsidiary of the Azerbaijani industrial conglomerate Azermash. Total investment in the plant is estimated at 14.11 million US dollars, of which Azerbaijan contributed 75 per cent.

Photo: Azermash