TEHRAN, Oct. 29 (Mehr News Agency) - The Russian automaker GAZ, signed a $250 million deal with Iran's heavy trucks manufacturer, Iran Khodro Diesel Co. to produce in Iran a new version of its Gazelle vans.

Based on the agreement, the Iranian company will go in for the completely built units (CBU) for its first phase of production during which some 12,000 of the vans will be assembled, the Persian service of ISNA reported here on Sunday.

The assembly of the completely knocked down (CKD) vehicles will start within a short period and domestic production of the parts will hit 50 percent during the first year.

Iran has embarked on a vast cooperation with Russia in the auto sector. The nation has sold over 5,000 of its Samand sedans to Russia. Iran has also launched a Samand production assembly line in Belarus.

Moreover, another Russian auto producer Kamaz, has signed an agreement with Iran, worth over $400 million based on which 1,500 heavy trucks will be built in the Persian Gulf nation per annum, the report also noted.

... Payvand News - 10/30/06 ... --