Iran’s cement production capacity will reach 70Mt by the end of the 4th Socio-economic and Cultural Development Plan (2010), said an official at the Ministry of Industries and Mines on Tuesday. Safakish reminded that the country used to spend $1bn in order to produce 14Mt of cement in the past. However, $1.1bn is required to come up with production capacity of 40Mt. This saving mainly stems from using domestically-produced equipments and the country’s determination to move toward indigenization in this industry.
 
By implementing two major cement projects underway and optimizing the operation in old plants, Iran would be expecting to reach the projected output of over 70Mt by 2010. Having the private sector involved in cement projects and providing proper financial and banking facilities are of the issues that could speed up increase in production capacity for now and the years to come, Safakish stated.