The National Iranian Copper Industries Company has signed a cooperation agreement with the Mining Investment Insurance Fund to protect private producers of copper concentrate, IRNA reported.
The agreement was signed in a Monday ceremony attended by Deputy Minister of Industries, Mining and Trade Mehdi Karbasian. The agreement is aimed at facilitating and speeding up the fund’s process of offering investment insurance to mining companies active in the exploration, extraction and processing of copper ore.
The agreement is aimed at accelerating exploration and extraction of copper mines. According to the deputy minister, who is also the IMIDRO head, the recent capital increase at the Mining Investment Insurance Fund will help extend the fund’s coverage to achieve development targets set for the current year in the mining sector.
Karbasian said protecting small and medium private sector mines is a top priority of IMIDRO, adding that the fund offers the best way to support the miners. He said considering the crucial role of the fund in mining activities, IMIDRO has increased the fund’s capital to 680 billion rials ($23.28 million based on official exchange rate) from the previous 100 billion rials upon the Cabinet’s approval. He pledged that the figure would soon increase to 2 trillion rials ($68.5 million).
Proposal for Increasing Steel Tariffs
Karbasian said IMIDRO, as the country’s major state-owned holding company active in the mining sector, has sent the Industries Ministry a proposal to levy higher import tariffs on steel. The proposal, if approved, will also offer export incentives to steelmakers.
“The current import tariffs are not high enough since China has allocated huge subsidies for steel export, while tariff rates are currently hovering between 10% and 20%. Turkey, for instance, has imposed a 30% import tariff to confront Chinese dumping policies,” the deputy minister noted.
