According to the International Iranian Stone Exhibition, in the year of the production leap and the conditions of sanctions and the problems facing the country in the field of currency, attention should be paid to domestic capacities to reduce imports. One of these areas is the production of paper required by the country from stone. Fars province is one of the mines and minerals of the country and has a significant capacity in this field.

Mineral paper is a product similar to paper and its main ingredient is calcium carbonate. The characteristics of producing paper from stone include not harming the environment, because paper production does not require cutting down trees and consuming water.
In 2017, considering the capacity of the mines in Fars province and with the aim of eliminating the deprivation, the Cabinet authorized the Industrial Development and Renovation Organization of Iran (IDRO) to invest in a paper production project from stone in the city of Kharameh.

The implementation of this project in the city of Kharameh, considering the capacity of mines in Fars province, can be an opportunity for the country's self-sufficiency in the field of paper and prevent the outflow of currency from the country.

Based on the characteristics of mineral geology, currently 23 types of minerals are extracted from the mines of Fars province.
Identification of 37 types of minerals in Fars and extraction of 23 types of minerals from mines of decorative and facade stones with export advantage and production of about 18% of total production, production of refractory and industrial soils, existence of limestone capacities in the north, northeast And east of Fars province, the discovery of dolomite reserves in southern Fars and the pursuit to complete studies to identify and explore nickel as a strategic metal in the province and huge resources of various building materials, including mineral capabilities of this province.

Paper production requirements from sodium carbonate

Amir Bayat, Deputy Minister of Industry and Head of Iran Industrial Development and Renovation Company (IDRO), met with the Governor of Fars on October 29, in response to his request to set up a paper factory for extracting sodium carbonate in Kharameh, referring to the high technical knowledge required to set up this factory. He said: Extracting all kinds of RMP papers with a thickness of 0.04 to one millimeter from calcium carbonate rocks as raw materials for this product is only part of the requirements for setting up this industrial unit.

He said that the required manpower, technical knowledge and machinery are among the other necessary aspects of the project implementation, which IDRO has pursued in this field by updating the technical and economic studies and feasibility study of the project.

According to Bayat, the estimated daily value of foreign exchange and rial investment for all operational phases of the project is about 5,000 billion rials. In the first phase of this year, Idro has completed the capacity of about 5,000 tons of RMP paper out of a total of 20,000 tons on its agenda. has it.

The governor of Fars also said in this meeting: Acceleration in setting up a paper factory in Kharameh city can create employment and benefit from this environmental industry in the region and the prosperity of related industries in Kharameh city, which is why efforts are being made with participation and supply. Financially, this factory should be operated by banks with the technical assistance and support of Idro.

Fars mining and mineral processing capacity can replace oil revenues

Zafar Afshon, Deputy Governor of Fars Province for Economic Affairs Coordination, said about this project: "Paper production project from stone in Fars Development Development Document is predicted to be implemented with the participation of IDRO in low-income cities and through this measures to reduce unemployment." 

He added: Predicting the construction of a paper mill from stone, considering that there are many stone mines in Fars province, it is necessary to make optimal use of the small stones left from the mines.

He continued: "In this regard, a plan to produce paper from stone in the city of Kharameh has been predicted, but due to the existing problems, Idro did not act in time to invest in this project."

The deputy governor of Fars said: during the visit of the Minister of Industry, Mines and Trade of Fars province on 11 October of this year, it was decided to accelerate the implementation of this project.

Afshon added: "We hope that with the implementation of this plan, the unemployment rate in the city of Kharameh, which in the past was more than 30 percent and now has reached about 10 percent, will decrease again."

He continued: Paper produced from stone has elegance, strength, beauty and durability and is important from different angles compared to other production papers.

The deputy governor of Fars said: "Also, its raw material is found in abundance in Fars province and does not require the import and export of foreign currency from the country and is considered an action to prevent the outflow of foreign currency from the country."

Afshon added: Fars province has a lot of capacity in the field of mining, which has not been used much in the past.

He continued: "Considering the problems that have arisen, we believe that mines can replace oil and we can provide the currency needed by the country through the processing of minerals."

Paper production from stone in Fars meets the needs of the country

Hamidreza Izadi, head of Fars Province Industry, Mining and Trade Organization, said: The plan of stone paper factory in Kharameh city will be implemented with the investment of Iran Industrial Development and Renovation Organization (IDRO) from the Ministry of Silence Is.

He added: in the project of Kharameh green paper factory, about five thousand billion Rials are invested, the production capacity of which is 20 thousand tons per year, and it employs 100 people.

He continued: Due to the fact that there are many areas and lime mines in Fars province, the raw materials for producing paper from stone are available.

The head of the Industry, Mining and Trade Organization said: "The paper production project from stone is a very good and environmentally friendly project and will help meet the domestic needs in the field of paper."

Izadi added: "In addition to Kharameh city, licenses have been issued for the private sector to produce paper from stone in Neyriz and Khorrambid cities, and we hope that the projects will be implemented as soon as possible."

He continued: "Currently, a land with an area of ​​36,000 meters in the industrial town of Kharameh has been purchased by Idro to implement a paper production project from stone, and preliminary work has been done to implement the project."

The head of the Industry, Mining and Trade Organization of Fars province said: The governor of Fars had a meeting last week with the head of the Industrial Development and Renovation Organization of Iran, in which it was emphasized on accelerating the implementation of this project in Kharameh city.

Izadi added: During the visit of the Minister of Industry, Mines and Trade to Fars province on 11 October of this year, they also talked about speeding up the implementation of this plan, and the Minister gave the necessary instructions to his deputies to speed up its implementation.

* IRNA