TEHRAN - Iran’s first-ever charging station for E-buses has been launched in northern city of Karaj in Alborz Province.

On the sidelines of the inauguration ceremony of the station, 40 home-made E-buses were also added to the city’s fleet.

The station is equipped with eight 240KW fast chargers, developed by Mapna Group, which can charge 16 buses at the same time.  

The buses will be fully charged in two hours and a half so that they can travel as long as 250 kilometers with their coolers on.

Back in February, an official with the Industry, Mining, and Trade Ministry said Iran’s public transportation fleet was going to receive 2,500 electric vehicles by late March.

Referring to a plan for the import of electric cars to the country, the Manager of the electric vehicle project of the Industry Ministry Hasan Karimi-Sanjari said: “It is expected that 2,500 electric vehicles will be added to the public transport fleet before the New Year.”

According to the official, the mentioned vehicles were already purchased and 600 of them were cleared from customs, 600 were still going through customs procedures and 1,500 were being transported into the country.

Earlier in November 2023, Iranian Industry, Mining, and Trade Minister Abbas Ali-Abadi said three models of electric vehicles are expected to come to the market in the first half of the next Iranian calendar year (started in late March).

“We have two or three examples of domestic electric cars that may be released in the first half of next year,” Ali-Abadi told the press on November 23.

According to the official, the government also plans to supply 100,000 electric taxis in big cities.

Also in August 2023, Ali-Abadi said that Iranian automotive companies had accelerated their plans to manufacture electric cars.

The official said, however, that the country would not wait for a scale-up in domestic manufacturing of EVs, adding that imports would also increase to respond to the growing demand for such vehicles in the country.

He noted that Iran’s energy sector stands to benefit from the expansion of EV infrastructure, adding that using EVs would also be very economical for Iranian motorists.

In February 2023, Iran's MAPNA group, which is a group of Iranian companies involved in implementing major industrial projects, announced a plan for building 20 electric vehicle charging stations across Iran.

The mentioned stations would be launched in public places such as shopping centers, public parking lots, accommodation centers such as hotels and guesthouses, intercity resorts, entertainment centers, gas stations, and roadside parks, the company said.

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