A total of 1,800 units of different kinds of agricultural, construction and mining machinery were produced during the first nine months of the current Iranian year (March 21-Dec. 21), according to Abouzar Jamshidvand, an official with the Ministry of Industries, Mining and Trade.
A total of 900 such machinery were produced in the corresponding period of last year, he added, noting that the production volume has doubled this year, IRIB News reported.
He noted that Iran meets about 80% of its machinery requirements from domestic production.
According to the official, there are 26 producers of such machinery in Iran.
Dilapidated Mining Machinery
Although Iran produces some of its needed mining machinery locally, the country does not have the technology to manufacture many such machines, which need to be imported.
According to the head of the House of Industries, Mining and Trade, the average age of Iran’s mining machinery is currently around 40 years.
“One reason [why the machinery have not been renewed] is that they are too expensive due to the high rates of foreign exchange in Iran [against the rial]. This makes small mines unable to afford their required equipment,” Abdolvahhab Sahlabadi was also quoted as saying by Mehr News Agency.
The official noted that there is also a shortage of mining machinery spare parts in the domestic market.
“There are more than 15,000 units of mining machinery that are over 20 years old, which need to be replaced,” deputy minister of industries, mining and trade, Reza Mohtashamipour, has been quoted as saying by IRNA.
Noting that a part of the aging fleet may be renovated, he said the rest needs to be imported.
Referring to restrictions on import of mining machinery in Iran, the deputy minister emphasized that imports are allowed only if the machinery is not produced domestically.
“Imports of machinery that can be produced domestically are banned,” he said.
The import of mining machinery has been hindered by negotiations with two domestic producers, the deputy head of the Mines and Mineral Industries Commission of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture, Mehrdad Akbarian, said.
He explains that the producers are lobbying to suspend import until they can sell their products.
“Unfortunately, the government’s imposition of preconditions and complicated bureaucracy for import of mining machinery means restrictions remain in the way of imports of mining machinery,” he was quoted as saying by the news portal of ICCIMA.
Noting that Iran currently needs about 25,000 new machines in its mining fleet, he said, “To solve this problem, in addition to domestic production, we need to import at least 5,000 machinery per year.”
Akbarian said as domestic production is limited both in terms of quantity and type and even in terms of quality, shortage of various types of mining machinery should be addressed as soon as possible via imports.
“We need to use specialized mining machinery to lower costs. These machines do not exist in sufficient numbers, nor do domestic manufacturers have plans to produce them. This is while specialized machinery can change the conditions of our mines and lower mining costs and increase our competitiveness with other countries,” he added.
The official concluded that restrictions on the import of much needed mining machinery has caused heavy losses for miners.
Large Mines Operating at Half Capacity
The ban on import of mining machinery has led to Iran’s large mines operating at 50% of their full capacity and the country’s small- and medium-sized mines to the verge of closure, the deputy head of Iran Mine House, Hamid Reza Amirian, said earlier.
“This is a disaster for our mining industry. It’s been a few years since this ban has come into effect. The decision was made on faulty grounds to begin with,” he was quoted as saying by the news portal of Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture.
The official explained that after banning automobile imports a few years ago, the government somehow put mining vehicles in the same category. Mining companies cannot import 100-ton and 150-ton dump trucks and 200-ton and 300-ton loading machinery.
“Officials say the reason behind this ban is to offer support to domestic production of these machinery, whereas there is no such thing as domestic production of most mining machinery. These heavy machineries are produced by only six or seven companies worldwide. Given the current circumstances we cannot become a producer,” he said.
Amirian noted that there are 5,000 abandoned mines and 3,000 gravel and sand mines that need machinery to be able to resume operation. Our local production cannot even meet 10% of their demand for machinery.
Stressing that economic sanctions imposed on Iran don’t allow the import of new machinery, he said, “We can only purchase secondhand ones, which too is not allowed because we have ‘sanctioned’ ourselves.”
