According to the International Stone Exhibition of Iran, the names of the neighborhoods in the central province and heart of Iran are associated with ornamental and facade mines, while Iranian travertine is unique in the world, and Iranian marble and granite are also famous in different designs and colors. Has a world.

Iran is geographically one of the world's largest suppliers of rock because it is located east of China, India, Vietnam, Afghanistan and Pakistan and west of Turkey, Jordan, Italy, Spain, Greece and Egypt. Has a good chance of marketing mineral products.

On the other hand, Iran is strategically positioned among the target markets of Russia including Russia, the CIS, the Gulf States, Iraq, Afghanistan, North Africa, Turkey and Lebanon and is ranked first among the most diverse countries in the world. In decorative stone production, there can be an advantage for international merchants and suppliers (stone).

Despite these capabilities, the status of Iran's ornamental mines and capacities in the world's markets is still undesirable and additional efforts should be made to expand the dominance of this industry.

One of the tools for recognizing Iran's mineral advantages and localities in the field of ornamental stone is the launch of an international and national exhibition that has been hosted by the International Stone Exhibition in Nimvar on the 25th of October this year.

The exhibition, with the participation of 400 local and foreign participants, is an excuse to explore the opportunities and challenges facing Iran's stone industry and the city of Mahalat as the main focus of the country's rock with a comprehensive look at different dimensions.

Mining authorities and governors of the country and province cumbersome laws and administrative bureaucracy, financing, insecurity, damping machinery, internal market downturn, lack of export conditions, lack of liquidity, high production costs and lack of competitiveness in Foreign markets are one of the most important challenges facing the stone industry in the neighborhoods.

Chairman of the Mines and Minerals Commission of the Iranian Chamber of Commerce said: property interest or government salaries, taxes, rising shipping costs and finished prices, some mines are in a coma and many of the country's medium and small mines are on the brink. There are power closures and adjustments.

Bahram Shakouri continued: Some macroeconomic policies in the Ministry of Industry are not properly explained and are implemented without regard to the current economic conditions, so that miners cannot raise the taxes and government salaries of mines in conditions of boom or recession. To the contrary.

He pointed out that the private sector in the mining sector continues to face problems such as export duties, lack of liquidity, lack of domestic mining products, lack of proper market prosperity and the tensions and margins created by the state system. 

The mines chief said: Mines need targeted supportive views to survive and be effective in the country's economy, and in a fragile economy, the miners should not be treated in such a way as to harm their production.

Mohammad Reza Bahraman stated: Most of the country's mines are small and medium-scale, and if their support is lifted, they are half-activated or stagnated, while mines are one of the country's most significant potentials for wealth generation and employment.

He added: "National capital should not be lost easily and cumulative management of small-scale mines with an effective program of strategies is beneficial to the revitalization of these units."

"About 50 percent of Iran's stone mines are closed and about 20 percent are part-time," said the chairman of the board of directors of the International Stone Exhibition.

Hossein Pourhassani added: "The problem for many miners is the lack of liquidity and the lack of sales of mineral products because the market is stagnant and many miners cannot sell their ore.

"Many of the costs, such as government salaries and value added tax, come in cash from miners, and many miners are unable to pay these huge sums because they do not sell and face market stagnation," he said.

"The concern of the activists in this sector is that they need support in cheap financing, given the investment in mining," he said.

Pourhassani continued: The neglect of the stone processing industry with regard to extractive materials, equipment depreciation and backlog in mining technology is another problem.

He said the government could restore the units to activity and production chains by backing miners with tax breaks and government payrolls intended for second-class mines and outlining the task of other sectors by outlining the roadmap for mining.

Managing Director of Iran International Stone Exhibition said that many of the mines in Iran and second-class neighborhoods are facing financial difficulties due to rising costs.

Behnam Nikfar said that these mines do not have the financial power of first class mines and cannot pay state taxes and salaries just like them.

"Ninety-five percent of second-class mines are closed because they cannot afford to pay for mining, taxes and government fees," he said. "These mines need to be identified and resolved."

He said: The closure of second-class mines is fueling unemployment and workers' crises, as many stone mills in Iran buy second-class stone and cannot afford first-class stone.

He pointed out that special exemptions could be effective policies by the government and officials for second-class mines because they allow miners to gain little financial power to pay for their taxes, duties and government rights.

Another important issue is high bank profits, said Nikfar. In order to increase production, there is a need for profitable, single-digit banking facilities for the manufacturer.

A member of the Kerman province mining house said that due to the long-term checks, the return of the miners' capital is difficult.

Hossein Mehdizadeh added: "Modern machinery supplies need liquidity, but the stone industry suffers from liquidity shortages due to market downturns."

He said: The technology of many of the machinery in the stone industry in Iran has been around for the last 40 years and if necessary support is provided to update the mining equipment.

He added that the price of finished stone in the country is high and this will take away the competitiveness of the mining units, which should be complicated in this regard.

A member of the East Azarbaijan Mining House said: "The Iranian stone market is still traditional and does not comply with the new methods of stone mining. This gap should be quickly compensated in the light of the program and purpose.

"The cutting of stones is in traditional processing units and is done with worn-out machines, and it is necessary to replace existing machines in the shadow of high-quality targeted support to enable miners to compete," Thorough Nowruz added.

He said the consumer market in Iran is looking for plaque and less design and architectural activities are among its activities. He said: Due to the downturn in the market, reduced consumption and supply of stone in the domestic market is currently facing a problem of not receiving or delaying checks on product sales and this is holding back miners.

Deputy Minister of Mines and Minerals, Minister of Industry, Mining and Commerce, who was present at the opening of the International Soling Exhibition in Nawar, said: "Miners in the field of stone should focus on production towards mineral processing and value added." Because exporting raw minerals while pumping basic resources at a low rate does not help eliminate the unemployment chain and does not bring with it the production of wealth and employment.

Jafar Sarkhini believes that the country's quarrying sector has seen a positive growth, with 12 and 13 percent growth in the third and fourth quarters of last year, respectively, and four and a half percent growth this spring.

He added: "This growth is favorable due to the stagnation of housing and construction, and the analysis of the country's mineral activity shows that the development of the mineral field is well underway."

"The government's policy this year is to double the export of minerals and the ability to produce quality products," he said.

He added that the export of stone mines and its related industries last year was about $ 350 million, which is a two-fold increase in this area for the current year.

He added that despite the capacity of decorative stone reserves in the country the current export volume is insufficient and the boom in the domestic construction market with the aim of increasing production and consumption of rock is seriously pursued.

Deputy Minister of Industry, Mining and Commerce said: Mines are important focal points of sustainable development, which is different from sector development and at the time of sanctions, despite all the problems, the mines and related industries were the only ones that suffered the least damage. .

Saragini stated: "Three hundred and eighty thousand people work in the field of stone industry and its related activities and six thousand and five hundred stone processing units are active in the country, which reflects mineral capacities and its place in development.

"To achieve a resilient economy and create sustainable employment, we need to avoid selling raw materials," he said.

Mahalat city with a population of fifty-five thousand is the largest polar-producing population in the country, some 150 kilometers from Arak. There are seventy active stone mines in Mahallat city with a definite mineral reserve of thirty million tons and an annual harvest of two million tons. More than two percent of the world's building stone and eight percent of the world's travertine stone are produced locally, and there are two hundred and eighty eighteen million square meters of stone processing facilities in the neighborhood, which accounts for 13 percent of the country's production.

* IRNA