Iran is planning to more than
double the country’s steelmaking capacity in the next few years, Platts
learned from Mahdi Karbasian, chief executive of state minerals and
metals holding company Imidro, speaking during the World Steel
Association annual conference in Moscow last week.
Iran is planning to more than double the country’s steelmaking capacity
in the next few years, Platts learned from Mahdi Karbasian, chief
executive of state minerals and metals holding company Imidro, speaking
during the World Steel Association annual conference in Moscow last
week. He said: “At the moment the capacity of crude steel production in
Iran is 17 million metric tons/year, but with launching of new projects
the country’s capacity will be raised to 40 million mt/y within four
years." With the very rich sources of energy in Iran, Imidro considers
direct reduction technology as the basis for this for expansion. As the
15th largest producer of steel in the world, Iran has high potential to
expand cooperation with foreign companies," he said. Karbasian listed
the advantages of Iran's steel sector as availability of raw materials,
rich energy resources, skilled workforce and easy access to open seas
and markets of 14 neighboring countries. A steel specialist told Platts
he believes that European steel companies might be very interested to
implement new projects in Iran but, since the sanctions were imposed
against the country, at the moment Chinese constructors are the main
suppliers of technology to Iran’s steel industry. Iran specially needs
technologies to decrease pollution and energy consumption as well as
water consumption in steelmaking he said.