TEHRAN, June 28 (Xinhua) -- Iran has reduced export of iron ore in the past few years to curb the export of unprocessed mineral, Deputy Minister of Industries, Mining and Trade Dariush Esmaili was quoted as saying by Eghtesad Online news website on Sunday.
"Some six million tons of iron ore were exported from Iran during the last Iranian calendar year (ended on March 19, 2020), which constitutes a meager share of the country's 90-million-ton annual iron ore output," said Esmaili.
According to Esmaili, Iran's iron ore exports stood at around 20 million tons per annum about a decade ago.
In a bid to prevent the export of unprocessed minerals and meet the requirements of domestic producers for raw materials, Iran has levied 20-25 percent duty on the export of raw minerals since September 2019, according to the report.
The move encourages the mining industry to create added value products, Esmaili added. Enditem
