Stone expo kicked off in Tehran
The 13th International Stone Exhibition of Iran kicked off in Tehran on Monday.
The opening ceremony of the exhibition was attended by senior officials including Reza Mohtashamipour, deputy Industry, Mine, and Trade minister, and Mostafa Taheri, an Iranian lawmaker.
Over 110 Iranian companies as well as their counterparts from six different countries, namely China, Russia, India, Italy, Turkey, and Greece, are showcasing their latest products and achievements in the five-day exhibition, IRNA reported.
The exhibition covers three main areas, namely mining machinery and equipment, consumables, and minerals processing.
Currently, there are more than 6,000 mining and decorative stone processing units active across Iran, which have provided jobs for about 600,000 people.
On average, 10 to 11 million tons of decorative stones are being mined in the country annually. However, the production rate has never exceeded 15 million tons.