Planned Opening of Rail Production Line Cancelled

Esfahan Steel Company has cancelled the inauguration of its rail production line scheduled on Saturday. ESCO did not elaborate on the reason for the cancellation, neither did the company specify another date for the production line’s opening, which has been delayed several times before, Bourse Press reported. On Tuesday, ESCO signed a contract with the Islamic Republic of Iran Railways to produce 40,000 tons of U33 rails, 10,000 of which are to be delivered by the end of the current Iranian year (March 2017). The Isfahan-based company is betting on the launch of the project, as it seeks to increase its capital in Tehran Stock Exchange by 322% to around $925 million through the revaluation of assets. The IRII declared that Iran needs an average of 300,000-400,000 tons of rails per year to meet the needs of this key transport sector.