Iran’s mineral potential, is not yet known

Head of Iran Economy House:

Ebrahim Jamili, an Iranian zinc industry manager and Head of the Iran Economy House, believes that Iran’s mineral potential is not well-known. He emphasized that attending global events in mining and mineral industries as well as providing the comprehensive database of the sector are the current needs of the industry. This board member of Asia Zarrin Madan Co. also announced that companies from Europe are negotiating to purchase a part of the stocks of Asia Zarrin Madan Co. and Zanjan Kimia Co.

“We have created a capacity of 480,000t in the zinc industry. However, we have been faced with a shortage of minerals and some other problems. Thus we have not been able to utilize the capacity fully”, Jamili said.

The Head of the Iran Economy House also emphasizes that the JCPOA has provided the conditions for using foreign capital and technology.

“We should be able to create a balance between domestic facilities and capabilities and cooperation with foreign companies. Over the past years, we have achieved a considerable stand in the technical and engineering sectors, manufacturing equipment and some mining machinery. However, for the human resources training and capital attraction, we need to communicate with foreign companies. So, combining internal and external factors, we can increase the capabilities to produce competitive products,” he clarified.

According to Jamili, in addition to zinc and lead industries, there is a great potential in industries such as ceramic, tile, industrial soils, copper, steel, and iron ore which have not been fully utilized.

“Although we have a great chance in the development of mines, there are some problems in the private and public management. For example, the sector has not been somewhat directed for the joint venture. As a result, the problems should be fixed by applying the knowledge of the day and broader view,” he stated.

Varied packages

The Head of Iran Economy House underlined that due to the diversity of Iranian minerals, investment packages should also be diverse including 10 million to one billion dollars projects for the investor. The type of partnership with foreign parties should be specified based on the requests and the scale of activities.

He pointed to the fact that the leading companies in various industries are seeking to cooperate with Iran. This could be the beginning of an increase in cooperation in the mining and its associated industries.

According to Jamili, Iranian companies using foreign investment can achieve mutual interests in the current favorable conditions.

He stated that Asia Zarrin Madan Co. was the first company to invest in the Mahdiabad Mine and extracted high-grade concentrate from low-grade minerals while the type of the mineral and the soil in the mine has a particular complexity.

“The Zinc industries have a good financial standing in Tehran Stock Exchange and are considered as one of the most successful TSE companies,” he noted.

Asia Zarrin Madan Co.and Zanjan Kimia Co. are the largest producers of lead and zinc concentrate in Iran. The grade of lead ingots produced by the companies reaches 99.996, and the grade of zinc ingots is 99.99 which is Special High Grade. Also, a part of the companies’ activities is dedicated to the production of copper concentrate, zinc hydroxide, zinc oxide, zinc powder and lead oxide, pure silver, and silver crucible.

Negotiation for stock sale

Stating that Asia Zarrin Madan Co.and Zanjan Kimia Co. are the largest private companies in Iran producing lead and zinc concentrates, he said,”We are negotiating with a few foreign companies to sell the stocks of these two companies. This negotiation is about to end, and the possibility of a deal is high.”

According to Jamilli, foreign parties (European companies) have offered to buy 15 percent of the shares of Asia Zarin Madan Co.and Zanjan Kimia Co.

The Head of Iran Economy House maintains that given the energy, mineral and human resources available, Iran can produce competitive products with the help of foreign companies.

He emphasized that the provision of Iranian mines’ database and presenting it to the overseas audiences could assist in identifying the mining and mineral sector in Iran. Also, attending global events and working with the media play a significant role in presenting the capabilities of Iranian mineral industry.

SOURCE: Mine & Business TODAY