TEHRAN- Iran’s nine major steel companies produced over 7.85 million tons of steel ingots during the first five months of the current Iranian calendar year (March 21-July 21), up 15 percent from last year’s same period.

The country’s steel ingot output stood at 21.8 million tons, of which over 6 million tons were exported to the world markets, IRNA reported.

Manufacturing 55 million tons of steel is on the agenda by the end of the sixth Five-Year National Development Plan (2021), however the country’s steel output is forecasted to reach 51 or 52 million tons by the mentioned date.

According to the World Steel Association (WSA), production of crude steel in Iran stood at 14.457 million tons during the first seven months of 2018, indicating 23.6 percent rise from 11.697 million tons in the same period of time in 2017,
It is while the world’s steel production during January-July, 2018 rose just 5 percent.

The WSA also put Iran’s crude steel output at 1.981 million tons in July of this year, with a 13.2-percent rise from 1.75 million tons in July of 2017.

EF/MG