1,200 idle mines revived as investment push picks up
Industry Ministry spokesperson Ezzatollah Zarei said 1,200 idle mines has been reactivated and measures introduced to accelerate investment in the mining sector as the country pursues a 13.5% growth target under the Seventh Development Plan (SDP).
Zarei told IRNA that the government had delegated some decision-making powers to provincial authorities, shortened administrative procedures and introduced investment packages to encourage greater private sector participation
in mining.
Under Iran's development plan, the mining sector is expected to achieve 13.5% growth by the end of the plan period, Zarei said, adding that the government had launched a series of measures, including reactivating idle mines, developing infrastructure and facilitating investment procedures to meet that goal.
As part of such efforts, 1,200 idle mines have resumed operations, he said. The government has also transferred some authority over mining zones, idle mines and mining license transfers to provincial governments to speed up decision-making.
Zarei said the ministry had also prepared 95 investment packages for mining projects to be offered to investors across the country.
"Some mines may not be economically attractive on their own, so we are seeking to encourage investment in them by offering the necessary support and incentives," he said.
On foreign investment, Zarei said overseas investors were active in parts of Iran's mining sector, although investment levels did not match the country's resource potential.
He said Chinese investors had participated in projects involving building stone, gypsum and copper, while investors from Central Asian countries, including Kazakhstan, were also involved in some mining activities.
According to Zarei, the limited level of foreign investment in Iran's mining sector reflects the country's broader economic and international conditions.
The country is the 15th-largest mineral-rich country globally, and Iranian officials call mining the backbone of industrial development and say it should replace oil as the primary revenue generator.