TEHRAN – The Islamic Republic of Iran is currently the exclusive producer of train rails in the Middle East, the managing director of Esfahan Steel Company (ESC) stated on Saturday.

Bahram Sobhani added that for the time being only four companies across the world are certified to manufacture train rails.
An agreement between the ESC and the Islamic Republic of Iran Railways Company was signed on Saturday for the production of U-33 standard train rails.
The agreement was inked in the presence of Roads and Transportation Minister Hamid Behbahani, IRIB reported.
Under the deal, in the first stage the company vowed to provide the railway company with 20 thousand tons of standard rails by early February.
In the second stage, the company will allocate 100 million dollars to establish a rail assembly line with an annual production of 200 thousand tons.
The production capacity is expected to hit 600,000 per year in the third stage.
Behbahani in his addressing speech pledged to offer the ministry’s 100-percent support for domestic industries related to railway, wagon, locomotive, and respective parts construction.
Pointing to the complicated process of rail building, he urged the Steel Company to establish a related laboratory.
He went on to say that it is expected to have annually 1300-1400 km railing, as a step toward the target of 35-thousand-kilometer railing, which is a target of the 20-Year Outlook Plan.
The ESC is Iran’s major steel producer, which was granted Iran’s best brand award last Tuesday. The company has so far offered 80 percent of its shares to the private sector, in line with Article 44 of the Constitution. During January 19 to February 17, 2008, 531 companies were approved to be privatized of which 132 were oil related companies.
Railway transportation has a significant importance in terms of low fuel consumption, safety, and the low number of casualties, which underscores rail industry development, the Mehr News Agency quoted Behbahani as saying.
The Transport Ministry will financially support all companies involved in rail industry development as long as their work is up to standards, he added