Nine-month export of cement hits 386,000t

Some 386,000 tons of cement, valued at $20.1m, was exported from Iran since the beginning of the current Iranian year (March 21, 2005).

This showed 12% increase (in terms of weight) in comparison with the same period last year. In the same period, Iran Customs Administration registered export of a total of $192.5 million of building materials to set 54.7% increase. Some 92% of Iranian building materials were destined for Afghanistan, China, Iraq, Kuwait, and Azerbaijan.

Iran will import some 400,000 tons of cement in the next two months. “The volume is to be imported from China, Malaysia, India, Korea, and Philippines,” said a cement industry expert on Monday.

Purkhalil added that some 750,000 tons of cement has been imported from these countries since the beginning of the current Iranian year. He noted that Iran’s cement production capacity is projected to reach 92Mt in the next five years, implying that more than 60% of the volume will be supplied by new cement plants that will come into line in the next few years.

“Nine development plans with a total capacity of 9Mt will go on-stream in Fars and Khuzestan provinces in the next three years,” he added.