Iran resolved to take Third place in world cement production by March

Iran is currently the fourth largest producer of cement in the world, said a senior Iranian official, and added that the country plans to boost cement production up to 75 million tons by March 2014. “Presently, Iran with an output capacity of 70mln tons of cement (a year) is the world’s fourth largest producer of cement after China, India and the United States,” Secretary of the Union of Cement Industry Employers Abdolreza Sheikhan said at the Sixth International Cement, Concrete and Construction Technology Exhibition in Tehran. He added that Iran will become the world’s third cement producer if its 75-million-ton nominal capacity becomes its actual capacity. More than120 Iranian and foreign companies, including Turkey, India, China, Russia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Italy participated in the event, which was held at Tehran's Permanent International Fairgrounds from December 27 to 30. Late in November, Sheikhan said the country's cement output hit 44,560,311 tons in the first 7 months of the Iranian calendar year (March 21-October 20), showing a two percent growth compared to the similar period last year. Sheikhan said that Iran's cleaner production hit 43,401,757 tons during the period with 4 percent growth comparing to the similar period last year. He added Iran's cement and cleaner production reached respectively 6.191.298, and 5,886,395 tons in October. The country plans to boost its cement output to 85mln tons by the end of the next Iranian calendar year (starts March 21, 2014). Iran exported cement to 24 countries including Iraq, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, Russia, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Pakistan, Qatar, Turkey, the UAE, Georgia, Oman, India, and China in the past Iranian calendar year (ended March 20, 2013.)