French industrial company Alstom has agreed to invest €1.2bn in Iran’s Arak Pars Railway Wagon company, according to a report by Islamic Republic News Agency released on September 4.

French companies have been at the forefront of investment in several Iranian industrial sectors since the nuclear deal came into effect in 2016, curbing international sanctions against Tehran. French companies are active in the gas, automotive and other consumer segments of Iran, to name some of the major targets, and French President Emmanuel Macron is spearheading EU resistance to Donald Trump’s designs on scrapping the nuclear agreement.

Alstom has confirmed it will be the lead partner in the production of wagons in a joint venture which will build 1,000 metro and suburban rail carriages in Iran; however, the latest investment figure given for the project is €100mn less than the originally cited sum.

Alstom representative Vincent Douret confirmed the company would invest in Iran. Douret met with Central (Markazi) Province Governor Mahmoud Zamani-Qomi and Parliamentary Deputy for the City of Arak Mehdi Moqaddasi, where the joint venture will be based.

It is thought that Alstom will have a 60% stake in the proposed joint venture. Mehr news agency previously reported in June that Alstom is partnering with the Industrial Development and Renovation Organisation of Iran, an investment fund active throughout Iranian industry, and Iranian Rail Industries Development Co.

The French multinational company operates worldwide in rail transport markets. It is active in passenger transportation, signalling and locomotives, with its products including the AGV, TGV and Eurostar trains.

In July, a deal was struck between Russian Railways and the Islamic Republic of Iran Railways (RAI) to construct power stations and overhead power lines to serve the Garmsar-Sari-Gorgan-Inche Burun rail route in Iran.

Meanwhile, in February, France’s state-owned railway company SNCF signed a deal with Iran on developing the Islamic Republic’s rail infrastructure. As part of that deal, the French are to help in the development of several suburban metropolitan lines around Iran as well as with station upgrades.