TEHRAN - Head of Iran Road Maintenance and Transportation Organization (RMTO) Dariyoush Amani said his organization has allocated 20 trillion rials (about $40 million) to renovate 1,000 road construction and maintenance machines, IRNA reported on Tuesday.

“Modernization of the road fleet is one of the programs of the Road Maintenance and Transportation Organization that started last year, and despite the fact that the resources intended for this purpose have not been realized, we are trying to make use of the legal capacities to renovate 1,000 machines by spending nearly 2,000 billion tomans (20 trillion rials),” Amani said in a meeting with officials of the provincial road maintenance organizations.

According to Amani, RMTO has also allocated up to 30 trillion rials (about $60 million) for the renovation of the country’s passenger transport fleet.

The official noted that the creation of infrastructure such as the construction of prayer halls, mosques, and road service centers, the development of border terminals and administrative buildings are also among the projects that the RMTO has implemented.

Mentioning the organization’s upcoming important programs, he said: “Winter road-management, the implementation of projects that can be opened in 10-Day Dawn, and during Nowruz holidays are also among the upcoming programs of the organization.”

Earlier this month, Mohammad Mousavi, the deputy minister for heavy machinery and equipment industries, said that manufacturing of road construction and mining machinery in Iran increased by 100 percent in the previous Iranian calendar year 1401 (ended on March 20).

According to Mousavi, during the mentioned year 3,500 such machines were manufactured in the country.

Referring to a plan for the modernization of road construction machinery, he said: “In the field of mining and road construction machinery, we have 15,000 worn-out machines which are over 20 years old. Due to the efforts of the private sector, 10 powerful Iranian companies were able to achieve a 100 percent increase in production in 1401 compared to 1400.”

According to the official, the Industry Ministry is taking the necessary measures to maintain the current upward trend in the production of the mentioned machinery in the country and plans are underway to achieve a 40 percent increase in output in the current year.

He said all the country’s road construction and mining machinery are going to be renovated in the next three years, noting: “The main problem of manufacturing companies is the supply of raw materials, and I hope that the plans we have had for the supply of raw materials will lead to an increase in production [of such machinery].”

EF/MA