Tata Engineering’s dream car Indica, it seems, is readying to take on the world. Even as deliberations are on to tap the European markets, Telco has drawn up plans to tap the Iranian market for which it is close to teaming up with local car maker—Iran Khodro Company.

Iran Khodro, the largest automobile manufacturer in the country with licensing tie-ups with international majors including Peugeot and Hyundai, is learnt to have expressed interest in sourcing 20,000-30,000 units of the Indica annually.

Negotiations with the Iranian company are currently on although no decision has yet been taken on whether the exports of the Indica would be in the form of completely knocked down (CKD) units/semi knocked down units (SKD) or completely built up (CBU) units.

"The talks are still in preliminary stages. Iran Khodro has expressed interest to import the Indica as they do not have a car model in that particular segment," sources said adding that the two companies are also negotiating for joint development of certain non-critical components for Indica.

The deal, if finalised, would give a big boost to Telco’s export drive for the Indica. With its volumes soaring in the domestic market in recent months, the company is now exploring major export opportunities to keep up the tempo in the international markets as well.

Iran Khodro, with a capacity to produce around 2.5 lakh vehicles a year and a marketshare of over 60 per cent, currently rolls out premium models like the Peugeot 206, Peugeot 405 and Peugeot Persia. The company is also a leading maker of commercial vehicles and has tie-ups with Daimler Chrysler (Mercedes Benz trucks and buses), and Korean chaebol Hyundai Motors for manufacturing buses for the local market.

The Iranian company sources said., has also approached Telco to gain inputs in the fields of automotive design, development and manufacturing, enterprise resource planning systems and human resource management systems.

For Telco, the negotiations with Iran Khodro comes at a time when it is also readying to take a plunge into the European markets in a big way. The company is currently in talks with MG Rover, a unit of German auto major BMW, to sell the Indica in the United Kingdom through the latter’s distribution network.

If the deal with MG Rover is struck, Telco may sell around 12,000 units of the Indica annually through this alliance for which shipments are expected to commence from the second half of next year.

Company officials however rule out the possibility of selling the car under the Rover brand name. Besides, efforts are also on to export the Indica to other European destinations including Switzerland, France and Germany. Telco plans to appoint dealers and distributors for selling the Indica in these markets.