The National Iranian Copper Industry Company (NICICO) said in a statement on Tuesday that its sales had reached 1,330 trillion rials (the equivalent of $1.92 billion at rates in a government-controlled market) in April-January, up 32% from the previous same period, Press TV reported.
The statement said that its domestic sales had increased by 29% year on year in the 10 months to late January to reach 1,020 trillion rials.
It said exports had reached more than 310 trillion rials or $644 million, adding that international sales had increased by 43% in rial terms and by 956% in dollar terms.
The NICICO described its sales performance as “successful”.
The firm is a subsidiary of Iran’s state metals and mining company the IMIDRO.
It has seen a major rise in activity and sales in recent years amid a boom in the Iranian minerals sector which many experts believe is a result of US sanctions on Iran’s petroleum industry.
Metals and raw minerals exports have been a major way of earning hard currency for Iran since the US toughened its sanctions on the country’s oil sales in 2019.
The NICICO announced in early January that Iran’s second-largest copper mine had reported a three-fold increase in its ore deposits.
It said that huge copper deposits had been discovered in Sungun mine in northwest Iran after a series of “shining exploration activities” in the area.
The company is also planning to speed up a giant copper mining project in the impoverished Sistan region in southeastern Iran.
MNA
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