The start of production of cars at the joint Azerbaijani-Iranian factory in the Neftchala industrial zone may stabilize prices on the automotive market of Azerbaijan, General Director of MBA Group consulting company, expert in the field of valuation Nusret Ibrahimov declared.
According to the expert, the main factor that can cause price stabilization will be the quality of cars produced.
“If the cars produced at the Khazar factory meet the demand of the population in terms of quality, they will stabilize prices on the market and reduce dependence on imports. Otherwise, our market will still depend on imported cars,” Ibrahimov said.
Ibrahimov noted that the new factory would have specific impact on the market after some time.
“As you remember, we were assembling Samand cars in Shamakhi once in the past. But they were not in demand among the population, and after a certain time their production stopped. It will also take time in this case. Only after a few months the production in Neftchala will have a certain impact on the market,” the expert said.
In early April the Azerbaijan-Iran automobile factory Khazar, situated in the Neftchala industrial zone, started production of the first cars.
The factory produces cars under the brand name of Khazar, and a number of models of Peugeot and Renault will also be assembled there. The annual capacity of the factory is about 10,000 cars. It is expected that in the future the cars will be delivered to Ukraine, Russia and Central Asian countries.
All cars produced at the factory comply with Euro 5 standards.
On August 6, 2016 a major Iranian automaker Iran Khodro and Azerbaijani company Azeurocar (subsidiary of AzerMash) signed an agreement to establish a joint automobile factory in the Neftchala industrial zone. The total cost of the project is estimated at 24 million manats. The Azerbaijani side has invested 75% in the factory, and the Iranian side has invested 25%. (Trend/Business World Magazine)