The export of cement chain products totaled 7.63 million tons worth $163 million over the first seven months of the current Iranian year (March 20-Oct. 21), showing a 24% and 11% decline in tonnage and value respectively compared with the similar period of last year, according to a Ministry of Industries, Mining and Trade report.
Imports of cement chain products over the seven months amounted to 24,000 tons worth $17.6 million that a show 27% and 34% fall respectively year-on-year, IRNA reported.
Latest data show Iran's cement production in the first six months of the current fiscal year (started March 20) reached 35.63 million tons, which show an increase of 14.4% compared with the same period of last year.
According to the data provided by the Ministry of Industries, Mining and Trade, Iran produced 31.15 million tons of cement in H1, Mehr News Agency reported.
The country's cement production capacity is 85 million tons, of which 65 million tons are consumed domestically.
India, Afghanistan, Russia, Iraq, Qatar, Kenya, Kuwait, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, Armenia, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Bangladesh, China and Oman are the main export destinations for Iranian cement.
Abdolreza Sheikhan, secretary of Iran's Cement Association, blames the decline in exports on lower demand from neighboring countries, particularly Iraq.
As of March 2018, Iraq used to be the main export destination of Iran’s cement but it is more than a year now since the neighboring country has suspended the import of this construction material from Iran.
“With the help of European countries, Iraqis established cement factories with a capacity of 40 million tons and no longer need Iranian cement,” said Hamid Hosseini, a senior member of Iran-Iraq Chamber of Commerce.
“At first, they increased cement import tariffs and then imposed an occasional ban. As we speak, Iraq is only purchasing clinker from Iran.”
Sheikhan noted that since costs associated with the production of clinker are very high for regional countries, they prefer to import rather than produce the commodity.
“Iraq used to account for 30% of Iran cement exports. Today, Afghanistan is the main importer of cement from Iran; Afghanistan has to pay between $50-60 per ton for importing cement from Pakistan compared with $25 per ton from Iran, plus transportation and customs. The export of cement to Afghanistan reached 584,000 tons in five months,” he said.
According to the secretary of Iran's Cement Association, more than 17.5 million tons of cement and clinker were exported from Iran last year (March 2019-20), registering a 32% growth compared with the previous year.
“Cement accounted for 6.7 million tons and clinker for 10.8 million tons of the total sum. Our main export destinations over the period were Iraq, Kuwait, the littoral states of Persian Gulf, China, Bangladesh, India and Central Asian countries,” Sheikhan was quoted as saying by Mizan Online.
“A total of 60.3 million tons of cement and 66 million tons of clinker were produced in Iran last year, showing a 9% and 6.9% rise compared with the year before.”
Iran was ranked the seventh biggest producer of cement in the world in 2019, with a production of 60 million tons. The country was previously the world’s eighth biggest cement producer with 58 million tons while Turkey was the seventh biggest producer with 72.5 million tons. However, as Turkey decreased its production in 2019, Iran took its place, Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organization cited the United States Geological Survey as reporting.
A bulk clinker transportation rail line was recently launched in the southern Khuzestan Province’s Shalamcheh border crossing.
“Through this rail line for clinker transportation, we estimate that exports of the commodity from Arvand will reach 3 million tons by the end of the current Iranian year on March 20, 2021,” Ali Mousavi, the deputy head of Arvand Free Trade Zone for investment and business expansion, was quoted as saying by IRNA.
Mousavi noted that Iran exports around 12 million tons of clinker every year and Iraq is the biggest export destination.
“Prior to this, loading and unloading of clinker used to take place at Khorramshahr Port, which had caused environmental hazards,” he said.
