The OMV group, the international, integrated oil and gas company headquartered in Vienna, is negotiating for a long term contract of crude oil with National Iranian Oil Company.

“Iran’s oil export to Austria has kicked off through spot contracts,” said Seyed Mohsen Ghamsari, Executive Director for International Affairs at National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), when asked about the latest status of Iran-Austria oil trade and the agreements signed with the OMV group, an integrated international oil and gas company headquartered in Austrian capital city of Vienna.

The official announced that so far a cargo of 1 million barrels of crude oil has been delivered to the OMV group and concurrently the talks for signing a long term contract of oil sale to the Austrians are underway.

“No final agreement has been reached yet,” reiterated the board member of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), “hence no volume of oil trade for the long term contract has been agreed upon.”

Two weeks ago, the OMV group announced that the company has received an Iranian cargo of 1 million barrels of crude oil at Italian port of Trieste. 

Iran's oil minister says U.S. companies are welcome to invest in the oil and gas industry
 In this Nov. 17, 2015 file photo, Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh listens to a question during a press conference in Tehran, Iran. State-run Press TV quoted Zanganeh Sunday, March 13, 2016, saying that U.S. companies are welcome to invest in Iran's oil and gas industry. The TV report said Zangeneh also asked the German company Siemens executives to invest in Iran's oil and gas industry. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi, File)

U.S. companies are welcome to invest in Iran's oil and gas industry, the Iranian oil minister said on Sunday.

State-run Press TV quoted Bijan Namdar Zangeneh as saying that "in general, we have no problem with the presence of American companies in Iran."

He said it is the U.S. government that is "creating restrictions for these companies," without elaborating. Zangeneh also confirmed that Iran's state-run oil company has held talks with General Electric.

"Of course, my deputy conducted these negotiations and when I inquired about them, it was said that the talks were positive," he said.

The TV report said Zangeneh also asked Siemens executives to invest in Iran's oil and gas industry.

"The German company must come to Iran to build equipment and parts needed in our oil industry and manufacture them here," he said.

All sanctions related to Iran's nuclear program were lifted in January under a landmark agreement reached with world powers, but the U.S. maintains separate sanctions related to Iran's ballistic missile program and its support for State Department-designated terrorist groups.

Iran is trying to regain its share of the global petroleum market after the removal of sanctions.

Saudi Arabia, Russia, Venezuela and Qatar floated the idea of a production cap last month with the aim of boosting global oil prices, but it was conditional on other producers joining in. Iran, which is eager to jumpstart its oil industry, has so far resisted.

Zangeneh dismissed the idea of a production freeze by Iran as "a joke", according to the TV report. He said Iran will take part in discussions on a possible oil production freeze after its output reaches 4 million barrels per day.

"As long as we have not reached 4 million bpd in production, they should leave us alone," Zangeneh said.

Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


  Source:   Associated Press

{jcomments on} 

Iran’s population of over 74 million people composes 1.09% of the world’s population; Iran has the second largest population, after Egypt, in the Middle East and North Africa region

The Islamic Republic of Iran, is a resource-rich and labor-rich country; new mineral wealth is being discovered each year, and a large part of the country is still unexplored:

Ranks seventh in mineral wealth; among the world’s top three holders of proven oil and natural gas reserves; possesses 10% of proven global petroleum reserves with an estimated 137.6 billion barrels of proven oil reserves; possesses about 18% of the earth’s natural-gas deposits, ranks as the world’s second holder of proven gas reserves after Russia with an estimated proven natural gas reserves at 1,045 trillion cubic feet (Tcf),

OPEC’s second-largest producer and exporter after Saudi Arabia

In the soon-to-come era of natural gas dominance over oil, Iran will oust Saudi Arabia as the world’s beating heart for energy
Strategic location, surrounded by 15 land and sea neighbors, can serve as a lucrative trade and transit route in both north-south and east-west directions

Abundant natural and human resources would be magnets for foreign direct investment if a hospitable business climate and sufficient incentives should prevail

Variegated climate and favorable topography allow for a rich agriculture under conducive policies

The minimal infrastructure needed for growth and development (roads, railroads, air and sea ports, modern communications) is already in place to promote and sustain growth under proper maintenance

According to a report published by Goldman Sachs, Iran has the strong possibility of becoming one of the world's largest economies in the 21st century
The country has a young and steadily urbanizing population:
65% of the population is under the age of 30
68% live in urban settings

Iran is the fastest growing country in terms of numbers of scientific publications in the world, growing from just 736 in 1996 to 13,238 in 2008

The Government is committed to a “comprehensive plan for science”, including boosting R&D investment to 4% of GDP by 2030 (it stood at just 0.59% of GDP in 2006)

Considered the region’s most “wired” nation, with more than one-third of its 74 million people having access to the Internet
Health outcomes in Iran have improved greatly over the past twenty years and now generally exceed regional averages; key to this success has been the Government of Iran’s strong commitment to and effective delivery of primary health care

Health outcomes in rural areas are almost equal to those in urban areas, with outcomes in terms of infant and maternal mortality nearly identical between urban and rural areas.

Among 169 countries, the Islamic Republic of Iran has been ranked 70th in terms of Human Development Index (HDI) according to the United Nations' report on 2010 Human Development Index (HDI)

Iran's economic growth hits  at two percent in the three month from December 22 to March 19 which corresponds to the last quarter of the previous Iranian year, said government spokesman Mohammad Baqer Nobakht at a press conference in Tehran.

He said, the figure includes  oil revenues, but with the exclusion of oil, the growth rate stood at 1.6 percent," Nobakht said.

Iran's crude export started to rise in January when the sanctions were lifted.

Nobakht explained that in the agriculture sector, growth improved from 3.3 to 5.5 percent compared to the rate for the preceding quarter.

During the same quarter, the rate for the industrial sector jumped from -4.4 percent to 0.6 percent, with industry and mining subdivision surging from -1.3 to 3 percent and the mining subdivision from -7.3 to 9.9 percent, he added.

Growth in the oil and gas extraction sector grew to 16.5 percent against the figure for the preceding quarter which was -9 percent.

"Growth in the group of other mines plunged from -2.7 to -7.5, however," he said, adding, "The water, electricity, and natural gas sectors improved from -1.1 to 7.9 percent.

"Housing improved from -21.7 to -16.5, services from 0.4 to 0.8, wholesale, hotels and restaurants from 0.3 to 1, and business from 0.6 to 1 percent."

Nobakht added that growth in the education, health, and social assistance sectors improved from 7.7 to 8.8 compared to the previous three-month period.

Iran's GDP (including the oil sector) will reach $386.1 billion in 2016, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecast in April.

The country's current-year economic growth is predicted to hit around five percent.

Iranian car makers manufactured 691,581 vehicles in the first seven months of the current Iranian calendar year (March 20-October 21), showing 26.2 percent rise compared to the same period of time in the preceding year, ILNA reported quoting Sasan Qorbani, the spokesman of Iran’s Auto Policy-Making Council, as saying.

Iran is scheduled to manufacture 1.35 million of cars by the end of the current calendar year (March 20, 2017), Deputy Minister of Industry, Mining and Trade Mohsen Salehinia announced in early April.
As Salehinia underlined, the government seeks to improve the quality as well as the quantity of the domestically produced cars on the way to boost their exports.

Iran sold light crude oil at $44.60 per barrel in the week ended on May 27, a 9-cent rise from its previous week, World Business Year reported .

The country’s light oil price stood at $34.5 on average since the beginning of current Iranian calendar year (March 20, 2016).

Also, Iran sold heavy crude oil at $42.39 in the mentioned week, with 6 cents increase from its preceding week.

The country’s heavy oil price stood at $32.05 on average since the start of this calendar year.

Meanwhile, Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC)’s basket price rose to $44.65 per barrel on average in the week ended on May 27, with 11 cents increase from its preceding week.  

Iran, once OPEC’s second-largest producer after Saudi Arabia, is seeking to clear space for its gradual return to the market now that the sanctions are being lifted against the country.

In the 169th (ordinary) OPEC meeting in Vienna on June 2, Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh announced that the Islamic Republic plans to increase oil production to 4.8 million barrels per day (bpd) in 5 years and return its pre-sanctions share of 14.5 percent in OPEC.

 

Iran paid its debt to the German Euler Hermes credit institution, Islamic Republic’s ambassador to Berlin said, IRIB news reported on Sunday.

“There are no more barriers on the way of German banks and companies’ cooperation with Iranians,” Ali Majedi said, “and the company will offer insurance to Iran as of Tuesday.”

As reported, Iran owes Germany about €500 million ($578.90 million) under so-called Hermes covers.

Hermes cover is a common way of referring to an export credit guarantee (ECG) by the German government. These guarantees are an important part of German foreign trade policy and protect German companies in the event of non-payment by foreign debtors. The export credit guarantees of the Federal Republic of Germany offer an array of insurance options which are mainly targeted at exports to developing countries and emerging markets.

Iranian banks and companies faced difficulties for transferring money during the sanctions’ era and foreign credit insurance agencies had to cover Iranian banks’ and companies’ due payments and now the government  has to settle all the outstanding debts to foreign firms.

Debts to foreign insurers like Sace and Coface and Hermes had stopped them from opening new credit lines for Iran.

Iran’s Market Brokerage Industry Annual Trading Report
    
 In the last Iranian year, ended 19 March 2016, out of Tehran Stock Exchange’s 107 member brokerage companies, 99 firms provided on-line trading access.

 

 In the last Iranian year, ended 19 March 2016, out of Tehran Stock Exchange’s 107 member brokerage companies, 99 firms provided on-line trading access.

The Exchange’s total trading turnover exceeded IRR 947,000 billion in the period, 27% of which was executed through on-line mechanism, which was initially launched in 2010. More than 33% of total on-line trading was related to 5 top brokerage firms: Mofid (22.6%), Bank Keshavarzi (2.9%), Agah (2.6%), Bank Saderat (2.45%) and Mobin Sarmayeh (2.45%). Aggregated on-line trading turnover surpassed IRR 231,000 billion, which amounted to 24.4% of total trading value.

Top 5 brokerage firms in terms of total trading turnover in the last year include Mofid (6.58%), Khobregan Saham (4.22%), Bank Saderat (3.43%), Saba T’amin (3.35%) and Behgozin (3.27%).

Iran’s railway sector is exciting with a lot of potentials for foreign exhibitors participating in Iran’s 4th International Exhibition of Rail Transportation, Related Industries and Equipment, dubbed RAILEXPO 2016 (running from May 15 to 18 in Tehran).


Firdavsi Nuraliev, the export sales manager of Lukoil Lubricants Middle East, the branch of Russian Lukoil Lubricants Company for the Middle East market, believes that the removal of sanctions will facilitates everything for business in Iran.

“We always eager to enter the Iranian market as it is one of the main markets in the Middle East,” he stated.

“We will enter the Iranian market in several stages. The first stage is to have a specific part of Iranian market on which we could trust. It will be achieved through producing the high quality of our products to the Iranian customers so that the demand will be increased, and then in the next stage we want to produce our products inside Iran,” the manager explained.

He mentioned high tax and customs duties Iran set for the foreign products entering the country as a downside for business in the Islamic Republic, although he said that it will be  temporary and will be resolved as the Iranian government plans to establish free trade zones in the country where taxes are exempted or lower.


Wolfgang R. Fally, the CEO of Germany’s Robel Company, a specialist for railway construction equipment and machinery, believes that there is no downside for activity in the Iranian market rather than local workers require some training to work with modern equipment.

“Experience of the workers here with the machines is a bit different from that of European ones. Maybe that is something that modern equipments are getting more complicated. You need the skill in the future to work with them. So it’s on us to provide more service and education and training to the operators of the machines,” he explained.

Speaking about the upside of business in Iran, the German manager stated, “As we have a long-term partnership with our agent here, for many years we are in close contact with the Iranian market. It is a huge market. Of course, that is very good for us. Especially in the urban areas I think there is a lot of potential, because you have big cities here.”

Asked if his company has any plan for transfer of technology to Iran, he said, “At this moment it should be convinced that our products are the right ones [for the Iranian market] and if the volume [of sales] gets bigger and if there is interest from the customers’ perspective, it’s an option of course to localize something here with our partner.”

 

 ‘Iranian market exciting with many upcoming projects’

Thierry Metrat, the product manager in Spain’s Pfisterer Company, a provider of solutions for railway electrification, said, “The Iranian market is very exciting, because there is big potential especially for railway electrification. There are many projects for the next years, so we are very happy to be here.”

“The political situation [in Iran] is now very good. It’s much better than before because countries are more open regarding what happened in the last months [sanctions removal],” the Italian manager noted.

 

 ‘Iran’s railway sector awaits lots of investment’

Fabrizio Maggioni, the sales manager of the Italian railway company Mont-Ele, highlighted, “We believe Iranian market is attractive because we know that in the future there would be a lot of investment in the sector, both for railway and also for urban transportation system.”

by Iain MacGillivray

Chris Parker, MBE, is the CEO of Iran Business Hub, a London-registered, international, British and Iranian partnership that specializes in large corporate entry into Iran. The Iran Business Hub provides confidential advisory, strategic planning and operational services. Mr. Parker sat down with GRI to discuss Iran’s re-entry into the global economy and the future of economic investment in Iran.
“Not a question of how economic engagement will happen but when”

GRI: With Iran’s re-entry into the global economy and the possibility of economic opportunities for trade and foreign capital, what do you see is the future for Iran regarding economic investment? What does Iran offer for future investors?

Chris Parker: I was just talking to former deputy governor of the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) – Kamal Seyed Ali, who aptly pointed out that “Iran is in a period of transformation.” What this statement means is that there is a sense that there is great momentum building up and an enormous appetite from western businesses and their Iranian counterparts to engage with each other. Essentially, both the private sector and the Iranian government are so to speak ‘moving out onto the dance floor’ regarding economic engagement. They are unsure of how to ‘dance with each other’, but the motivation is there.

However, there is a significant gap in information on how to facilitate this. Despite the appetite from international credit organizations, national banks and sovereign wealth funds, there needs to be patience and clarity before real economic engagement occurs. Notwithstanding this gap in information, there is support from all sides in making sure that this change and tempo continues. The necessary international frameworks and regulations are being established as we speak to facilitate these processes, but EU and US financial institutions need to help promote this further.

However, we must remember the significance of how big the potential market is in Iran. It is a consumer-driven market, which has been short of branded and luxury goods for some time and this presents an opportunity for importing and rebuilding consumer confidence in these areas. Of course external influences such as the continuing OFAC sanctions and regional instability will drive uncertainty in these relations, but the unstoppable momentum and interest that is there between the private sector and the Iranian government can only bring round positive outcomes. It is not so much a question of how this economic engagement will happen but when.
The potential of ‘soft infrastructure’

GRI: What future investment do you see for the Iranian oil and aviation industry? What other industries do you see substantial growth in and the potential for foreign capital investment?

Chris Parker:  The Iranian oil industry is in need of substantial investment. Some International Oil Companies (IOC’s), as well as their shareholders, will want to help Iran back onto its feet in re-entering the hydrocarbon market. Iran has the potential to dominate the oil sector and it is a growth economy. Regarding the aviation industry, growth is moving at a rapid pace and is fastest in terms of domestic aviation.

Besides this let’s not forget that it is far easier in Iran to invest large amounts of capital compared with other Middle Eastern countries. Iran is a signatory to The New York Arbitration Convention on the Recognition and Enforcement of Foreign Arbitral Awards of 1958. This allows transparency and significantly reduces political risk, as there is a final court of arbitration and court-enforced decisions if anything does go wrong. However, all such legal frameworks, of course, remain recently untested. Iran presents a safe place to invest large amounts of capital investment, therefore the drive for international investment in these primary industries.

In terms of other sectors as I mentioned previously, consumer goods will be one of the most major areas for investment and economic opportunities in Iran. However, what is also needed (and I can see exponential growth in), is ‘soft infrastructure’ such as in traffic control operation procedures, railway systems, and integrated logistics. Iran has a very well-educated population and the drive for innovation and design in population’s centres will see the potential for technological investment as well.

Don’t forget that visas into Iran are easier to obtain now, and it will become a very attractive international tourist destination especially in the north of Iran. There is no significant resort-based tourism yet but with ski-fields and scenery that is second to none, International tourism is on the up and up and will no longer be exclusively for adventure travellers. However, despite international investment, it must be made clear that Iran will dictate its own growth with the help of these international and regional companies.
“Iran can and will become a new trading hub”

GRI: What possibilities does Iran’s re-emergence in the global economy present for regional economic prospects?

Chris Parker: Iran is an island of stability in an ever uncertain and unstable region. It has the required institutional processes and security needed to provide a stable political and economic environment. This is why there is this thirst to invest because there is the potential as well as a secure environment for business.

Concerning regional integration, the political rapprochement and lifting of sanctions has also seen Iran play a potentially larger role in the region. The economies in the GCC are in trouble due to the drop in the price of oil and the social tensions that are caused by this. Iran, however, has opened its doors to investment from regional players and vice-versa. It is easy to obtain a visa for business purposes as Iran seeks to play a wider part in the economic integration of the region. Despite the political situation in the Middle East, there is an excellent opportunity for economic integration with other Gulf States as is demonstrated by Iran’s relationship with Oman. Iran can and will become a new trading hub just like Dubai.  
The need for a robust regulation model

GRI: Which countries are most interested in investing in Iran? Do you see potential investment from international economic players such as the United States and other developing powers?

Chris Parker:  In terms of investment and finance, there are still many primary sanctions holding back companies from investing in all sectors such as banking. Leading the way however is Turkey, who sees the opening up of the Iranian economy as an enormous opportunity. Turkey will dominate in terms of hard infrastructure, such as in construction industry due to its regional proximity and expertise. On the other hand, the EU and the UK will lead the way in ‘soft infrastructure,’ which I mentioned previously. Most of these investments will take the form of Joint Ventures that will develop not only these industries but also provide essential expertise.

Iran, however, needs to work out a robust regulation model – whether it follows the path of Dubai in terms of high standards or follows the quick build model with a lesser standard. However, this decision will be crucial if Iran wishes to attract and establish solid business investment.

Iran has now attained an unstoppable momentum. It is this rate of change that we need to observe and watch. For us in the business world, this tempo and rate of change must also come hand in hand with quality, safe infrastructure, and regulatory development. It must also be linked to political assistance from the international community and international business sector. The possibilities for the future are endless, but Iran cannot do this on its own.

Chris Parker, MBE, is the CEO of Iran Business Hub. He is also Chairman of Charmogen Group, an international consultancy network, and he was previously Chief Operating Officer for a major oil & gas exploration company. He has also been an Operations Director with Hyder plc in London, and was Project Director for the successful $1.3B Burj Dubai infrastructure mega-project in the UAE. Chris has served on UK and NL Government Trade Missions to the MENA region and frequently speaks at international trade conferences and comments live on Sky News and international media. Chris has a Master’s Degree in Technology and is a Chartered Manager and Fellow of the CMI.

keywords:Iran,Investment

Source:Global Risk Insights

The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in its latest report on countries’ risk index, reported Iran’s risk rating with one step improvement from 7 to 6 which shows Iran is ready for investment .

During the last meeting of Export Credit Guarantee Fund member experts to the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Iran’s new economic and trade status following the implementation of the nuclear deal and the lift of sanctions were discussed and evaluated, and the members voted by consensus to reduce the country’s risk ranking from seven to six.

According to credit risk classification by the OECD, countries are divided into seven groups from low risk (1) to high risk (7). The Islamic Republic of Iran was placed in the 4th risk rating during its eight government in 2001 and was later moved to the 7th rating in the next governments after the imposition of international sanctions.

The countries’ risk rating determines investment attraction limit, the cost of credit insurance and foreign financing. As a result, the three government branches of Iran should put on agenda the adoption of appropriate monetary, foreign exchange and trade policies in order to further reduce the country’s risk rating.

Head of Monetary and Banking Research Institute (MBRI) said opening branches of Iranian and European banks had been placed on the agenda.

Speaking at the 4th Iran-Europe Trade and Banking Conference in the IRIB International Hall, Ali Divandari said the event mainly seeks to review process of reforms in Iran’s banking system in order to speed up connections to the international system.

In the meantime, issues like future of the industry, launch of Iranian banks in Europe and meeting international standards will be surveyed by experts during the two-day conference.

MBRI managing director described Europe as the second largest trade partner of Iran after Asia and expressed optimism that the event will prove effective in facilitating trade and banking relations between the two sides.

He noted that MBRI, as the research arm of the Central Bank of Iran (CBI), had put on the agenda serious measures to reconnect Iran’s banking system to the global one as a means of paving the path for expansion of trade and banking ties.

“Investment opportunities in Iran, especially in infrastructure and energy sectors, will be introduced to foreign guests of the conference,” Divandari underscored.

He reiterated that compliance to international rules and regulations and combating money laundering were major prerequisites to reconnection of Iran to the International banking system.

The Monetary and Banking Research Institute is holding the 4th Iran-Europe Trade and Banking Conference in the IRIB International Hall on 29-30 April 2017.

The main objectives of the conference include the exchange of ideas between various scholars and specialists from different economic fields; active participation of reputable domestic and foreign firms; holding of multilateral meetings between European individuals, companies and institutions and their Iranian counterparts; provision of a platform for meeting potential customers and trade partners; building private and personal communication networks; and also introduction of various products and services.

Iran ranks 139th in the latest World Economic Forum annual report on “The Global Gender Gap”—a two-notch improvement from last year’s 141st.

The WEF report gave Iran a score of 0.587 in terms of women’s parity with men (0.00 being imparity, 1.00 indicating parity).

The 2016 report covers 144 countries (last year, it included 145 countries) and quantifies the magnitude of gender disparities and tracks their progress over time, with a specific focus on the relative gaps between women and men across four key areas: health, education, economy and politics.

Iran ranked 140th for economic participation and opportunity, 94 for educational attainment, 98 for health and survival and 136 for political empowerment.

The economic participation and opportunity sub-index (which is the main focus of this writing) contains three concepts: participation gap, remuneration gap and advancement gap.

The participation gap is captured using the difference between women and men in labor force participation rates. Iran has scored 0.224 (the average is 0.665) and ranked 142nd in this category. Last year, the country was placed 143rd.

The remuneration gap is captured through a hard data indicator (ratio of estimated female-to-male earned income) where Iran has ranked 141st and a qualitative indicator gathered through the World Economic Forum’s Executive Opinion Survey (wage equality for similar work) where the country was placed at 101st.

Finally, the gap between the advancement of women and men is captured through two hard data statistics. The ratio of women to men among legislators, senior officials and managers, in which Iran ranked 100th, and the ratio of women to men among technical and professional workers subcategory, where the country ranked 111th.

The WEF says Iran has narrowed the gender gap for legislators, senior officials and managers as well as women parliamentarians, from a low base. It has also fully closed its gender gap in primary and secondary education.

However, it regresses on wage equality, professional and technical workers as well as the tertiary enrollment gender gap.

The data reveal four broad groups of countries: (1) countries that have closed or are generally on track to close education gender gaps and show high levels of women’s economic participation; (2) countries that have closed or are generally closing education gender gaps but show low levels of women’s economic participation; (3) countries that have large education gaps as well as large gaps in women’s economic participation; and (4) countries that have large education gaps but display small gaps in women’s economic participation.

According to the report, Iran is among a group of countries that have made key investments in women’s education, but generally did not remove barriers to their participation in the workforce and are thus not seeing returns on their investments in terms of development of one half of their nation’s human capital.

This group includes Iran, the UAE, Chile and India. These countries have an educated but untapped talent pool and much to gain from women’s greater participation in the workforce.

Iceland is the top country on the WEF’s Global Gender Gap index and Yemen comes in last in the index.

A team led by Iranian professor Behrokh Khoshnevis is working on developing robots that will be able to construct buildings in a single day.

Behrokh Khoshnevis, an Iranian professor at USC Viterbi School of Engineering in California, US, told Mehr News that he has been working on Selective Separation Sintering (SSS) process for 20 years so that he can build structures in an automated way using 3-D printing.

SSS is the first process which will be able to work in zero gravity. Compared to expensive technologies like lasers, SSS provides more speed, accuracy and independence and has high potential for space and planetary use, he added.

Khoshnevis, who is a two-time NASA competition winner, maintained that construction work is highly dangerous, and statistics show that approximately 60,000 people lose their lives during construction; “construction also takes a lot of time and costs a lot of money, therefore building structures by robots is an urgent need.”

The Iranian engineer added that his project has been followed up by NASA to be implemented on other planets as well, saying “for years, I have been conducting various research and development on the construction of structures on the moon and Mars from the materials available in space. I am hoping to be able to apply this project in Iran as the first country of choice.”

“With this method, a 200m structure can be built in one day,” he said, adding “of course we will begin with smaller buildings and with bigger machines we can construct bigger structures.”

He further added that this technology enjoys massive energy and environmental benefits, adding “any structure can have a unique design of its own with complex curves.”

Khoshnevis’ existing Contour Crafting, a mega-scale 3-D printing process, won the grand prize in a 2014 NASA competition.

As many as 11,232 small- and medium-sized enterprises have received an aggregate of 79 trillion rials ($1.97 billion) in loans during the 10 months to January 19, 2017, according to the chairman of Iran Small Industries and Industrial Parks Organization.

Ali Yazdani, who is also a deputy minister of industries, mining and trade, added that the loans are part of a stimulus plan prepared by the government's economic team, based on which loans worth 160 trillion rials ($4 billion) are to be given to struggling SMEs in the industrial and agricultural sectors, IRNA reported.

By definition, enterprises run by 50 workers or less, and 100 workers or less are considered small- and medium-sized respectively, according to Iran’s Small Industries and Industrial Parks Organization.

In July 2016, it was announced that 96% of the 88,000 licensed Iranian businesses are considered small- and medium-sized.

According to another deputy minister of industries, mining and trade, Reza Rahmani, some 20,000 industrial units have emerged from recession since the beginning of the current Iranian year (March 20, 2016).

According to Farshad Moqimi, the deputy head of Iran’s Small Industries and Industrial Parks Organization, Iranian SMEs have attracted $1.84 billion in foreign direct investment since President Hassan Rouhani took office in August 2013, of which $653 million have been invested after the implementation of Iran’s nuclear deal.

“Since Rouhani became president, foreign investors have signed 47 contracts to establish small- and medium-sized industrial enterprises and create 2,740 jobs,” he said.

“These contracts have been signed by Turkey, Azerbaijan, Ireland, Japan, Iraq, Afghanistan, Croatia, China, Germany, France, Turkmenistan and the UAE.”

Seven of the 47 contracts have been signed since the removal of sanctions.

Of all the agreements, Moqimi noted that 25 projects have become operational and the rest are either under construction or their machinery are being installed.

Back in May, Iran Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mining and Agriculture hosted a delegation of World Bank experts who had come to assess the situation for the provision of loans to small- and medium-sized enterprises.

“We might be able to get them to provide us with at least $1.5 billion to $2 billion in loans, if we can convince them of Iranian SMEs’ potential and capabilities,” said Mohsen Jalalpour who was then the ICCIMA president.

In a move initiated by Iran Fara Bourse, the over-the-market exchange launched a platform for trading SME shares in December.

“The advent of SMEs in the capital market will help drive the economy toward greater transparency. It will also spur employment and growth by funding smaller businesses,” said CEO of Securities and Exchange Organization Shapour Mohammadi.

Iran's Deputy Industry, Mine and Trade Minister Mojtaba Khosrotaj, heading an economic and trade delegation, arrived in the Lebanese capital, Beirut, on Wednesday.




 Khosrotaj is set to attend an international conference on evaluating the capacities of the Lebanese people living abroad.

In a special panel for introducing Iran, he is also scheduled to introduce the Islamic Republic's capabilities in economic, tourism, industrial, trade, technical and engineering arenas to the Lebanese people living abroad.

While in Beirut, Khosrotaj is to hold separate meetings with several Lebanese high-ranking officials.

Initiated by Lebanon Foreign Ministry, the two-day conference will be inaugurated in Beirut on Thursday.

Latest inflation figures may suggest a pickup in Iran’s industrial base.
Producer Price Index, which measures inflation in manufacturing costs and prices, and is considered a foreteller of consumer prices, rose 4.5% in the rolling year to April 19, according to the latest report published by the Central Bank of Iran on its website.
According to the Persian newspaper Donya-e-Eqtesad, the rise is the lowest increase in producer prices since 1991, when the central bank started compiling PPI.
PPI (using 2011 as the base year) stood at 216.3 in Farvardin (Iranian month ending April 19), indicating a 0.2% growth compared with the previous month, the CBI report shows.
Part of that increase is due to a 1.7% rise in Industrial PPI, the most in 11 months, in the said month. The rise in industrial production prices comes after months of back-to-back decline, which had economists worried about low consumer demand that led to the decline.
There are three possible reasons behind the rise in industrial manufacturing prices. The rise could point to escalating economic activity in the sector, though one month is too weak a signal to back this assumption.
If prices continue to rise in the coming month, then we would be looking at a revival of industrial activity.
Rising costs, like wage increases, may have also fueled industrial PPI. Costs were rising for producers in previous months, but low consumer demand stopped producers from hiking their prices, the paper wrote.
That worry may be starting to dissipate, as the economy picks up in the post-sanctions era.
Last but not least, global commodity prices have reversed their decline in recent months. This rise has, at least in part, impacted the Iranian economy, especially its large commodity-fueled industrial sector. Thus, rising commodity prices have driven up production costs.
Iran emerged from years of economic isolation in January when world powers led by the United States and the European Union lifted crippling sanctions against Tehran in return for curbs on Tehran’s nuclear program.
The implementation of the accord in July has increased economic activity ever since, though the legacy of bad policy in prior years weighs heavily on the economy.

Iran Ship Building and Offshore Industries Complex Co. (ISOICO) and Dutch shipbuilders have signed agreement to cooperate in sharing engineering and technology services.

Mrs. Melanie Schultz van Haegen-Maas Geesteranus, Minister of Infrastructure and the Environment visited Bandar Abbas and her entourage of directors of shipbuilding companies, indeed a prominent industry in The Netherlands, discussed possibilities of cooperation with Iranian related industries, mainly ISOICO, on Wednesday evening.

ISOICO Director Hamid Rezaian, who was in the meeting, told reporters that his fellow company and Dutch IHC would work jointly in exchange and sharing of engineering and technology services and manufacture and procurement of spare parts; “DAMEN and IHC directors also visiting Bandar Abbas along the minister; they are among the largest shipbuilding and repair and maintenance of ships worldwide; a total of 2,000 vessels are their products,” he told the press.

Rezaian added that after implementation of nuclear deal with world powers, JCPOA, there had been a surge in the number of European and Asian companies seeking cooperation and participation in Iran’s projects, especially shipbuilding.

“We welcome Dutch companies’ capabilities in shipbuilding, building dredgers and tugs, and the technical know-how of the industry; Iran’s industry has ample opportunities for Dutch companies to work, especially in technology transfer and investments in the industry,” he added.

Dutch entourage arrived in Bandar Abbas on Tuesday and had notable personalities including representatives of BAM, an international contractor company, IHC Offshore Technology Institute, Royal Boskalis Westminster NV, STC Group (Shipping and Transport College Group), Van Oord, a dredging and land reclamation company, and Witteveen+Bos engineering and consultancy group.

Commenting on the latest business developments between the two sides, he said, "Regarding banking transactions, five or six second or third tier banks have begun dealings with Iranian entities. But as long as the concerns of major international banks wanting to deal with Iran are not removed, these visits of foreign delegations will not bear fruit," Pourfallah said in an interview.
Giving some numbers on the foreign trade missions that have visited Tehran so far, he said, "Nearly a thousand business and trade representatives have come to our country, which is a record. Moreover, Italy is the leading country in signing accords and letters of intent."
The first edition of the Iran-Italy Business Summit was held earlier this month in Tehran in the presence of a large delegation of Italian business leaders.
The meeting brought together key Italian and Iranian corporate and institutional stakeholders, leading economists and opinion-makers to help build an influential community of business leaders willing and able to enhance the close ties that marked the history of the two nations.
 

It is often heard that the foreign delegations come and go but nothing concrete happens, Pourfallah noted. "But in my opinion, after eight years [of sanctions] that we were cut off from the global economy, these visits were crucial and also necessary for both sides to be able to reconnect."
Henceforth "we should show solidarity and speak with one voice. We must insist on reaping the benefits that we anticipated when signing the nuclear agreement, and should not back down until we can find our way back to the global economy.''
True, foreign businesses are keen on reconnecting with Iran, but there are concerns regarding their future which has led to much hesitation and contemplation on their part, the official noted.
He warned of the consequences that "we will face should we not follow up on the accords that we envisaged" would follow the historic deal with the six world powers.
If things do not move on the right trajectory between Iran and the outside world "The number of business delegations travelling to Iran will gradually shrink and we will be back to square one – a sort of island disjointed from the rest of the world."
Iran has made known at the highest level of government that it wants to re-establish mutually-beneficial business with the comity of nations sooner rather than late. However, some legal hurdles still exist in the way of normalcy between western banks and Iranian businesses, namely the remaining US sanctions unrelated to alleged human rights violations and terrorism charges.