During this visit, the CEO of Iran Railways emphasized the necessity for accelerating the execution of strategic contracts to modernize Iran’s railway fleet and address shortages. Accompanied by a group of senior RAI as well as Roads and Urban Development Ministry managers, Zakeri held a joint meeting with senior managers of MAPNA Group. Both sides reviewed the latest status of the ongoing contracts.
During the meeting, MAPNA Group’s CEO, Khalil Behbahani, highlighted the group’s technical expertise in the rail sector. He described MAPNA as a long-standing partner to the country’s mobility and rail industry. Behbahani also added MAPNA is fully committed to fulfilling all its contracts and obligations. He underlined that the group is capable and fully prepared for fruitful participation in the rail sector.
Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Board of MAPNA’s Mobility Holding, Mohsen Pourseyed Aghaei, said MAPNA realized the need for domestic locomotive manufacturing and since the establishment of MAPNA Locomotive Engineering and Manufacturing Co. (MLC), the group has manufactured various types of locomotives. He added, MAPNA inked a contract to build 40 heavy freight MAP30 locomotives and to refurbish 37 passenger locomotives last year. Pourseyed Aghaei expressed optimism about the contracts being executed within the predetermined schedule.
Also, the Board Member and Deputy for Railway Fleet, Mohammad-Hadi Ziaei-Mehr, highlighted the special role of MAPNA Mobility Holding in developing the country’s rail industry. Ziaei-Mehr said given the urgent need of the rail network for modernization and improvement to overcome the existing shortages, Iran Railways (RAI) is determined to accelerate the execution process of these contracts. He stated hopefully by leveraging the synergies and professional expertise of the local engineers and experts at MAPNA, these projects will rapidly become operational and the productivity in the country’s rail transport network will enhance.
Pointing to the joint contracts between Iran Railways and MAPNA Group including the maintenance contract for GM locomotives, he noted that economic challenges and currency fluctuations have strained the supply chain of passenger, freight and shunting locomotives in recent years. Ziaei-Mehr said despite these challenges, the number of locomotives witnessed a significant increase this year through the planning by Iran Railways, Ministry of Roads and Urban Development as well as the cooperation of MAPNA Group and Planning and Budget Organization of Iran.
Ziaei-Mehr expressed hope that new contracts would be successfully executed using the high technological capabilities of MAPNA Group. These contracts include the production of 40 heavy freight MAP30 locomotives, the renovation of 37 passenger locomotives, and previous rail fleet contracts such as the ROO (Rehabilitation, Operation, Ownership) renovation of Alstom locomotives, and the maintenance contract for railbuses.
Furthermore, the Deputy Minister of Roads and Urban Development and CEO of RAI, Jabbar-Ali Zakeri, expressed satisfaction with the capabilities of MAPNA’s Mobility sector especially Wagon Pars Company and MAPNA Locomotive. He called for expansion of cooperation, saying MAPNA is expected to be more active than ever in developing suburban and electrified rail projects between the capital Tehran and other cities. Zakeri expressed hope that Iran Railways’ contracts with MAPNA would be executed promptly, supported by appropriate financing and adherence to contractual terms. He added the rail network still requires new locomotives despite Iran Railways’ efforts to increase the number of active locomotives in the country. Finally, Zakeri described MAPNA as a national company, saying utilizing the capabilities of organization like MAPNA has always been a priority.
Also, in this meeting, RAI’s Deputy for Investment and Transport Economy, Nourollah Beiranvand, stated that the partnership between Iran Railways and MAPNA is essential for upgrading the country’s rail industry. Beiranvand appreciated the efforts of those involved in the rail industry, especially the skilled staff of MAPNA. He expressed hope that effective decisions can be made by utilizing the collective wisdom of Iran Railways and MAPNA specialists that would result in improving the performance of the rail industry.
This visit reaffirmed MAPNA Group’s position as the main pillar for the development of Iran’s rail fleet and underscored the commitment of both parties to overcoming existing challenges to strengthen the rail transportation industry. On the sideline of this visit, the attendees also toured the MAP30 freight locomotive manufactured at MAPNA Locomotive Engineering and Manufacturing Company (MLC).
