Iran’s leading carmaker Iran-Khodro Company (IKCO) has appointed a senior manager from the energy sector as its new CEO amid a public outcry over surging prices and low quality which prompted the government to intervene.
Abbas Ali-Abadi was announced as new IKCO chief on Monday, hours after Hashem Yekke-Zareh was removed from the post due to what a government spokesman said was his uncoordinated decision to increase prices of products.
The 57-year-old Ali-Abadi has been heading MAPNA Group, a top Iranian energy engineering and construction company, for the past 10 years and has never served in the car sector.
His appointment comes as the government seeks to alley public concerns about affordability and quality of the cars produced in Iran amid sanctions imposed by the United States which has affected production at IKCO and other companies.
The appointment should be endorsed by members of the managing board of the IKCO, a company where a bulk of shares have been privatized over the past years, although many believe new owners are mostly state-run companies and the government has still the final say in the car manufacturer.
A report by Fars news agency said two of senior manager of IKCO had been arrested over the past few days over irregularities in the sale section of the company.
Founded more than 50 years ago, the IKCO leads production in Iran with over 600,000 passenger cars each year.
The company, seen as the largest in the Middle East and North Africa region, made headlines last month when it launched production for Peugeot 301 two years after the French company owning the model withdrew from a joint venture with the IKCO, citing fears about American sanctions on Iran.