Iran Mercantile Exchange has allowed the trade of scrap metals after officially registering scrap from Iran Railways Company.
Iran annually produces 2 million tons of scrap metal, while another 2 million tons is required to fulfill domestic demand. The country imports hundreds of thousands of tons of scrap from neighboring CIS countries every year.
Experts believe the scrap shortage in Iran is a serious threat against the domestic steel industry as the current annual production, reaching almost 20 million tons, requires a far bigger supply of used material.
Scrap is recyclable material left over from product manufacturing and consumption, such as auto parts, building materials, and surplus materials.
Scrap material is also supplied through ship wreckage, rusting trains, old vehicles, and torn down dilapidated buildings.
Steel manufacturers can make significant savings by using scrap; they can save on energy, raw materials and recycling. Using scrap also helps with reducing air pollution, water consumption, and water pollution. Above all, for steelmakers, every ton of new steel made from scrap iron saves 1,115 kilograms of iron ore.
