Iran Water Industry Counting the Cost of US Sanctions

Economic sanctions imposed by the US against Iran has hurt the water and wastewater industry, similar to many other sectors, participants in this year's International Water and Wastewater Exhibition in Tehran say.
Grappling with rapidly declining water resources, persistent drought and unusually high consumption, the government, with the help of the private sector, is stepping up efforts to modernize the ageing water infrastructure, build new treatment facilities and promote advanced farming systems.
Local companies faced huge barriers in interacting with foreign firms when it comes to importing equipment and parts, and as the last resort turned to local engineers and manufacturers.
However, domestic production too has been negatively affected by the US sanctions because some sensitive raw material to manufacture parts and components used in the industry cannot be imported due to the embargo.
Without the presence of major international players in Iran, the market is filled with Chinese products with questionable quality. As such, without access to quality raw material, the final domestic product may not be as good as its foreign counterpart.