TEHRAN- As announced by a provincial official, 16 idle mines have been revived in Kermanshah province, in the west of Iran, since the beginning of current Iranian calendar year (March 20, 2020).

Mohsen Darabi, the head of Industry, Mining and Trade Department of the province, stated that these mines have been revived through making an investment of 140 billion rials (about $3.3 billion), and created jobs for 127 persons.

Saying that 202 mines have permits for operation in the province, the official said that of this figure 163 mines are currently active.

According to the available statistics, the number of active mines in the country is more than 5,600 mines, from which an average of 400 million tons of various minerals are extracted annually, and the share of construction materials is estimated at 60 to 65 percent.

Currently, 257 mines are being equipped as part of a comprehensive program for reviving idle small-scale mines across the country.

Reviving 200 idle mines and setting up 25 processing units have been planned for the current Iranian year (ends on March 20, 2021).

Last year, 146 mines were revived throughout the country.

According to the information released by Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organization (IMIDRO), the most small-scale inactive mines are located in Khorasan Razavi Province and the least of them are located in the south of Kerman Province and North Khorasan Province.

MA/MA