Iran, Iran one of the largest iron ore producer in the world whose nominal iron ore production capacity is 80 MnT/year, has proven iron ore reserves of 3.1 billion tons, which were expected to be consumed by 2035. The country’s ore reserves were estimated at 5 billion tons, with an average Fe content of 46%, according to the Iranian Steel Producers Association.
Iran is planning to invest in Sangan iron ore mine of Herat Province, located in border areas between Afghanistan and Iran. As mineral resources from Sangan iron ore mine on the Iranian side are nearing depletion, Iran is willing to invest in the Afghanistan part of the mine to fulfill its need of raw materials for its factories.
The two countries have yet to reach an agreement on where to process the mineral resource. Afghan acting minister of mines, Nargis Nehan, said based on Afghanistan’s policy, extracted mineral resources should be processed inside Afghanistan.
Last month, Iran’s Ambassador in Kabul Mohammad Reza Bahrami said the two countries started talks on Iranian investment in Afghanistan’s mining sector. “We have held talks with Afghanistan’s government on investment in mines in the country, particularly the Sangan mine,” he said.
Behrouz Borna, the deputy head of Geological Survey of Iran, has been quoted as saying that Iran can use its experience and expertise in the mining sector to beat its two main rivals in the region, India and China, in exploiting Afghanistan’s untapped mineral reserves. “Since systematic mineral exploration has never been carried out in Afghanistan, many of the country’s mineral-rich zones are still untapped. The presence of Iran in Afghanistan’s mining sector will highly benefit both sides,” he said.
Railroad Connection
Iran and Afghanistan are also working to link their rail networks. When completed, the railroad connection will link the Iranian city of Khwaf in the northeastern Khorasan Razavi Province to Herat, Afghanistan’s third-largest city. The corridor in its entirety, from Herat to Khwaf, will connect Iranian mineral plants to those of Afghanistan, while also connecting Afghan deposits to the international waters in the south of Iran.
This will be Afghanistan’s first railroad link to Iran and the country’s only link to Persian Gulf and Sea of Oman.According to Reza Ahmadi from Iran’s Ministry of Roads and Urban Development, the railroad will have the capacity of transporting 27 MnT of cargo a year.
Inputs taken from Financial Tribune
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