TEHRAN – The Geological Survey and Mineral Exploration of Iran (GSI) has announced the discovery of 117 new promising mineral zones across the country, IRNA reported on Sunday.

According to GSI Head Alireza Shahidi, the mentioned zones have been identified under the framework of a program called “geological transformation and exploration of mineral reserves”.

This program has been carried out with the aim of developing unprivileged areas, creating productive employment with a special focus on the local expert workforce, collecting infrastructural information in accordance with land use, and finally discovering new reserves through aerial geophysical surveys, the official said.

Shahidi noted that the identified zones include 17 promising new gold zones, 60 copper zones, 25 nickel zones for the first time in eastern Iran, nine magnesite zones, and six lead and zinc zones.

According to the official, the necessary funding for the mentioned program has been supplied by the Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organization (IMIDRO), the GSI, and the Industry, Mining, and Trade Ministry under the framework of a trilateral agreement signed in 2021.

In this program, 60 geological and exploratory projects were implemented in an area of more than 37,500 square kilometers, Shahidi said.

Having 81 different types of minerals, Iran is one of the top 10 mineral-rich countries across the globe. In this regard, the Iranian government has been seriously pursuing several programs to promote the mining sector as a major contributor to the country’s economic growth.

The total proven reserves of Iran's mines are expected to reach more than 100 billion tons with the implementation of the Industry, Mining, and Trade Ministry’s exploration programs over 500,000 square kilometers of new mineral zones.

Despite the country’s huge potential in this area, due to some issues like the lack of necessary machinery and equipment and the lack of access to financial resources and foreign investment because of the U.S. sanctions, the Iranian mining sector has been struggling to operate at its maximum capacity over the past few years.

So, the government programs for promoting this industry are mainly focused on relying on domestic sources to help the mining sector overcome its current problems and hit its ideal targets.

EF/MA