SAIPA Production and Sales Report Released

Iran’s second largest auto manufacturer released its sales and production report for the first nine months of the current fiscal year that started in March and said sales had increased month-on-month.

SAIPA produced 302,029 units and sold 299,525 during the period, Asre Khodro, a local automotive website said on December 27.

The estimated value of the sales was 69 trillion rials ($16.8 million), according to the company’s information.

The report also states that SAIPA’s Pride has had the largest production amount and sales share among its vehicles produced.

Production of the Pride saw a 16% increase month-on-month, while sales rose 19% month-on-month.

The model has had a 68% share in the company’s production rate during the nine-month period, the report adds.

In the past month alone, 55% of the sales were also for the low-cost Pride model.

There have been speculations about stopping the manufacture of Pride by the end of the current Iranian calendar year (March 20, 2017). While SAIPA’s CEO, Mahdi Jamali earlier stated that as long as there is demand for the model, SAIPA will continue to manufacture the design as it meets current basic requirements including emissions.

Earlier in August, Hassan Qarei, SAIPA’s director for research and strategic planning, announced that by March 2017, his company would unveil four new models.

So far, the company has been true to its word with the Sandero, Sandero Stepway, and Changan CS35 now all in the market. However, these models still only constitute a fraction of the company’s total overall sales.

The firm has also been negotiating and forging deals with major automakers for investment in new projects and establishing joint ventures.

During the summer, the company formed a deal with Paris-based carmaker, PSA Peugeot Citroen, which obliges the French automaker to invest €300 million ($330 million) over the next five years for the production of three Citroen models, which will be sold in the country via a network exclusively established for the brand.