SHIRAZ, Fars Province Since the start of the year on March 20, 92,846 tons of minerals have been exported from this southern Iranian province, said provincial Mines and Metals Department Director General Mojtaba Shariati here Thursday.

Talking to IRNA, Shariati put the value of the exported minerals within the period at $7,563,000.

Shariati said nearly 33 percent of the stone slabs exported were from Fars Province.

He said 2,202,000 tons of minerals were extracted in the first five months of the year. The figure shows 12 percent rise compared to the one within the same period the year before, he added.

The official said limestone, gypsum, china stone, marmatite, mosaics, fire clay, granite, silicon, salt, lead, zinc, cobalt, chromite, copper and manganese were the minerals extracted within the period in Fars.

Meanwhile, according to a report from Ilam Province of Iran $1,173,000 worth of non-oil commodities were exported from Ilam this year.

Director General of the Industries Department in Ilam Province Karim Doust-Mohammadi told IRNA on Thursday that the goods, including garments, gunny sacks, ground sweet roots, had been exported to Germany, Italy, Kazakhstan and Iraq.

The amount of exports showed more than 10-fold rise compared to the figure within the corresponding period the year before, he added.

(IRNA)