The production of stones used for ornament and façade of buildings will reach 115 million square meters by the end of the current Iranian year, ending March 20, 2015, IRNA quoted Mohammad Fatemian, director of mining at the ministry of industry, mines and trade as saying. He also said that last year, almost 110 million square meters of the stones were produced. Iran extracts approximately 20 million tons of ornamental and construction stones in a raw form, though less than 5 percent is being exported. Fatemian went on to say that the administration has started negotiating with Chinese authorities in a bid to pave the way for local miners to accelerate exports to China. In the last two decades Iran should have ranked among the 5 leading ornamental stone exporters, however due to weaknesses in manufacturing, the industry has failed to build on its earlier successes.
