Gov’t Earns $17b From Marine Industry

Managing Director of Ports and Maritime Organization of Iran Mohammad Saeed-Nejad said the government earns $16-17 billion from marine industry every year. “Latest figures show the marine economy, including oil, gas, transportation, ports and seafood, comprises 4.1% of Iran’s gross domestic product,” ISNA quoted him as saying. According to Saeed-Nejad, the figure stands at 10% for many coastal countries. Referring to the private sector’s investment of up to 6,000 billion rials (about $168 million) in Iranian ports, Saeednejad earlier said, “We seek to hand over the public facilities of dredging sector to private entities.” Saeednejad said Iran ranks 75th in the world in terms of investment in marine infrastructure development.