Azerbaijan, Baku, May.20/ Trend R.Zamanov
Iran's steel output accounts for 60 percent of the Middle East's total steel production, the managing director of Mobarakeh Steel Company said on Monday.
Iran's share of steel imports also equals to 30 to 33 percent, the IRNA News Agency quoted Mohammad Masoud Samieenejad as saying.
The latest statistics show that Iran is the world's 15th biggest steel producer, he explained.
Mobarakeh Steel Company's output accounted for 89 per cent of Iran's total steel production in 2011.
Deputy Industry, Mine and Trade Minister Vajihollah Jafari said on May 4 that Iran plans to produce over 16 million tons of steel by the end of the current Iranian calendar year (March 20, 2014).
By inauguration of some new steel production units, the country's total output capacity will be increased by over 3 million years, the Mehr News Agency quoted Jafari as saying.
The private sector will carry out the mentioned projects, he said.
Jafari put the country's current steel production capacity at 19 million tons per year, noting that once the mentioned projects come on stream, Iran's annual steel production capacity will reach 22.5 million tons.
Iran produced over 17.4 million tons of steel products in the previous calendar year, he explained.
The latest statistics released by the World Steel Association shows that Iran has produced 3.64 million tons of crude steel in the first three months of 2013.
The amount shows 0.4 percent increase compared to the same period of time previous year.
Iran's crude steel output in March stood at 1.330 million tons, which is 14.3 percent more than the same period previous year.
The country's production growth in March was more than other major producers of the world including China, India, USA, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, Russia, and Ukraine.
Some 388.82 million tons of crude steel was produced across the globe in the first three months of the current year.
The figure shows 2.3 percent increase compared to the same period of time previous year.
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