Seventy percent of the stone industry's capacity remains unused
Secretary of the Iranian Stone Association: Units of this industry operate with only about one-third of their nominal capacity despite the capacity of one hundred and eighty million square meters, so the most important priority of this industry is the activation of empty capacities.
According to Iran's International Stone Exhibition, Ahmad Sharifi stated: Approximately the capacity of Iran's stone industry is one hundred and eighty million square meters in six thousand processing units whose production amounts to about sixty million square meters, of which ten million square meters. The square is exported and fifty million of it is spent on supply.
He said: "Due to the decline in construction this year, production is also limited. In 2012, the construction amounted to about one hundred and forty million square meters, while currently the figure is in the range of fifty to sixty million square meters. So the dramatic decline in construction this year, which will certainly continue until next year, has ruined the boom in stone consumption inside.
He added: "Most of the processing units are manufacturers that do not have export quality and their products are available for domestic use, so there must be a major move by the government and the Ministry of Commerce." In this context, incentive processing units and facilities should be provided. It is also necessary to address issues such as management problems, circulating liquidity and system hardware problems and to improve the quality of standard stone production.
Identifying target markets; ways to revitalize the stone industry
Sharifi considers the most important action needed to revitalize the industry is to identify target markets and believes that provision should be made for facilities and facilities to launch products in target markets. This fundamental move is a time-consuming one and requires the serious determination of the Government and Ministry of Finance to reach the current export potential of at least 50 million square meters, at least fifty million square meters, as the international market has the capacity to absorb and absorb this. The increase in production is quantitative and qualitative, but several factors have led Iran to remain in the export industry of tens of millions of square meters.
Regarding the identification of target markets and the creation of facilities and facilities in them, the Secretary of the Iranian Stone Association stated that measures such as the establishment of permanent exhibitions, permanent warehouses, governmental support for the integration of industrial units and export management companies, as well as promoting the quality and culture of exports were also included. The industry can be a boon, as investments are made and the potential is there, and this recession can be saved.
He noted: "Many stone processing units have been shut down because when out of six thousand units with a capacity of eighty-eight million square meters, only one-third of the capacity is active, it is natural for many processing units to close.
* ISNA
