TEHRAN- Iran’s annual crude steel output is planned to reach 33 million tons in the current Iranian calendar year (to end on March 20, 2018), National Iranian Steel Company Managing Director Abdolmajid Sharifi told IRNA on Sunday.

The country’s crude steel output stood at 18.466 million tons in the past Iranian calendar year 1395 (ended on March 20, 2017), showing 11 percent rise from 16.656 million tons in 1394.

According to a January report published by the World Steel Association (WSA), Iran produced 17.89 million tons of crude steel in 2016, registering an 11 percent growth compared to the figure in 2015.

Iranian Steel Manufacturers Association’s Secretary Rasoul Khalifeh-Soltan believes that while the country’s steel industry’s growth has been 5.7 percent on average in the recent years, the figure can reach 10 percent this year, given the promising condition the sector enjoys at present.

MA/MG