Iran Registers Growth in Coal Extraction, Concentrate Output

Iran’s two major coal companies extracted 1.68 million tons of coal and produced 602,958 tons of coal concentrate in the last fiscal year (March 2016-17), which indicates a 21% and 12.95% growth compared with the year before respectively, Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organization reported on its website.

Tabas Parvadeh Coal Company extracted 1.5 million tons of coal and produced 501,521 tons of concentrate. Central Alborz Coal Company’s coal extraction and concentrate output stood at 180,563 tons and 101,437 tons respectively.

TPCCO in South Khorasan Province and CACCO in Mazandaran Province are both subsidiaries of IMIDRO.

South Khorasan Province’s Tabas region is home to about 55-76% of Iran’s coal reserves, with estimated proven coal reserves of 2.5 billion tons.

The coal sector plays a crucial role in the steel production chain, as it is the primary feedstock required for running steel mills.

Iran aims to become the world’s sixth largest steel producer by 2025, as per the so-called 20-Year Vision Plan. The plan stipulates the production of 55 million tons of crude steel per year, which in turn requires the annual manufacture of 3.2 million tons of coking coal and 4.5 million tons of coal concentrate.