Iran's deputy minister of
industry, mine and trade says the country will host the biggest
international conference on mines and mineral industries to be attended
by companies from 27 countries.
Speaking to Iranian and foreign reporters on Wednesday, Mehdi Karbasian
said that 284 domestic companies will be also present in the conference,
during which more than 200 mineral projects ready for investment will
be presented.
Karbasian, who also heads the board of Iranian Mines and Mining
Industries Development and Renovation Organization (IMIDRO), added that
the conference will be attended by foreign companies from 27 countries,
including Germany, Sweden, Finland, China, India, Japan and Canada.
The official said the number of registered participants of the
conference reached 821 on Tuesday, including 73 senior managers of
well-known international companies.
Noting that the number of foreign companies taking part in the
conference proves ineffectiveness of international sanctions imposed on
Iran, Karbasian said, “The main loser of sanctions against Iran are
European countries because some of them, such as Germany, enjoyed a high
share in Iran's trade exchanges” before complying with US-engineered
sanctions against Tehran.
He said the Islamic Republic of Iran has been grappling with sanctions
for the past 35 years but has never gone back on its principled
positions.
The sanctions were imposed against Iran by the US and European Union at
the beginning of 2012 claiming that there is a military aspect to
Iran's peaceful nuclear program; an allegation Iran categorically
rejected.
The Islamic Republic and the P5+1 group of countries – the US, the UK,
France, Germany, Russia and China – reached an interim agreement on
Iran's nuclear program in the Swiss city of Geneva last November, which
was followed by a statement of mutual understanding in the Swiss city of
Lausanne on April 2. The Lausanne statement is considered a prelude to
the achievement of a comprehensive deal before a self-designated
deadline at the end of June. A key point of the statement was a promise
to lift a series of economic sanctions imposed on Iran.
Karbasian stated that Iran's known mineral reserves amount to 57
billion tonnes, and the figure is expected to increase by 40-50 percent
through further prospecting activities.
“The most important topic to be discussed at the conference is the
mineral sector and its role in creating new jobs and helping development
of the country,” he said.
According to Karbasian, respective shares of mines and mineral
industries in the country’s gross domestic product stand at one and 5
percent.