TEHRAN – Iranian Transport and Urban Development Ministry plans to offer 14 infrastructure projects to be financed through the country’s stock market, Iran’s Deputy Transport Minister for Resource Planning and Management said.

“Studies have been concluded for 14 infrastructure projects for entering the capital market, and investment companies are assessing various methods and models of offering this projects in the stock market,” Amir-Mahmoud Ghaffari told ILNA.

According to Ghaffari, seven railway projects and seven freeway projects will be offered in the capital market, and the transport ministry is considering which of these projects should be the priority.

“This is the Transport and Urban Development Ministry’s first experience in this area and we are designing a model for its implementation”, the official explained.

He further noted that the ministry is holding several meetings with the Securities and Exchange Organization (SEO) to plan the model and approach for these projects to enter the market, adding that investment companies are developing a proposal for the stock exchange which will be finalized within the next month.

Referring to the schedule for the offerings, the deputy minister said, "We are trying to offer the projects in the capital market in the first half of the current [Iranian calendar] year (started on March 20).”

“At the first stage, two projects will be listed,” he added.

Back in December 2019, Ghaffari had said that the county needs over 1.8 quadrillion rials (about $42.8 billion) of financial resources for completing its transportation infrastructure projects.

The ministry plans to tap the existing capacity of the capital market to fund projects in the transportation and housing sector, he said.

The official further noted that the Transport Development Fund (TDF) has been established as the only specialized and financial institution in the field, for supporting the Transport Ministry’s infrastructure projects.

In the past few years, Iran’s capital market has gone through major transformation, and every year the country is advancing more in this area.

The government has been taking serious measures for supporting the stock market and for attracting public resources into this market.

Earlier this week, the managing director of Tehran Stock Exchange (TSE), which is Iran’s major stock market, said that the country’s stock market has attracted 350 trillion rials (about $8.33 billion) of liquidity since the beginning of current Iranian calendar year (March 20).

EF/MA