Nearly 60% of shares of an ochre (red soil) mine on the southern Hormoz Island in Hormozgan province were offered to the island’s residents during a ceremony attended by provincial officials on Wednesday, IRNA reported. The head of industry, mine, and trade organization in Hormozgan province, Khalil Qasemi said 3,000 of the 4,300 shares, each valued at 55,000 rials ($1.6 at market rate) are ready to be transferred to the island inhabitants. The ochre mine has 2,650 metric tons of proven hematite reserve and is expected to create large employment opportunities in the island once the processing line is set up, said Qasemi. Ochre is a natural earth pigment containing hydrated iron oxide, which ranges in quantity from 20% to 70%. Two more mines in the province are also scheduled to go public.
