TEHRAN- Over 26.926 million tons of copper ore was extracted in Iran during the first two months of the current Iranian calendar year (March 20-May 20), IRNA reported.

As reported, the two-month copper ore extraction shows a 13-percent fall from the figure of the same period of time in the past year.

Copper ore extraction also fell five percent to 14.888 million tons in the second month of this year from that of the previous year.

Four development projects worth 40 trillion rials (about $952.3 million) were inaugurated last month in the copper sector of Kerman Province in the southeast of Iran.

President Hassan Rouhani put the projects into operation through video conference.

The projects inaugurated in Khatoon Abad Copper Complex included increasing the capacity of copper smelting in the complex, building a copper concentrate storage, construction of a sulfuric acid production plant, and an oxygen supplying unit. 

Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organization (IMIDRO)’s Managing Director Khodadad Gharibpour was present in the inaugural ceremony of the projects.

By putting the first project into operation, the complex’s capacity for producing copper anode rises by 50 percent to 120,000 tons, and the country’s copper smelting capacity rose to 400,000 tons. This project creates jobs for 120 persons.

Some 1.11 trillion rials (about $26.4 million) plus $118 million have been invested for this project.

The second project, which was the construction of a 60,000-ton storage facility, was implemented at the cost of 158 billion rials (about $3.7 million) plus three million euros, creating jobs for 250 people.

The third project is valued at 750 billion rials (about $17.8 million) plus 100 million euros and the fourth one was put into operation at the cost of 192 billion rials (about $4.5 million) plus 31 million euros.

In its outlook plan for the mining sector in the current Iranian calendar year (ends on March 20, 2021), Iran plans to produce 1.427 million tons of copper concentrate.

The country had planned to produce 1.198 million tons of copper concentrate in the past year, while the output reached 1.18 million tons.

Head of Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organization Khodadad Gharibpour has announced that the National Iranian Copper Industry Company has defined copper projects worth 100 trillion rials (about $2.38 billion) to be implemented in the current calendar year.

MA/MA