TEHRAN – Iran produced 14.5 million tons of sponge iron in 2016 to stay at the top of producers of this type of iron in the world, according to Mehdi Karbasian, the head of the Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organization (IMIDRO).

The official made this announcement in the 7th Iranian Steel Market Conference in Tehran on Tuesday, IRIB reported.
“Iran’s sponge iron production accounts for 25.3 percent of the world’s total output and our steel industry is very competitive considering production costs,” he said.
Direct-reduced iron (DRI), also called sponge iron, is produced from the direct reduction of iron ore (in the form of lumps, pellets or fines) to iron by a reducing gas or elementary carbon produced from natural gas or coal.
Karbasian also noted that the country’s annual crude steel output is planned to reach 55 million tons according to its outlook plan for 2025.
According to the latest report published by the World Steel Association, Iran produced 17.89 million tons of crude steel in 2016, registering an 11-percent growth compared to the figure in 2015.

EF/MA