Lifting of sanctions could heighten Iran’s steel scrap demand

ABU DHABI (Scrap Monster): The lifting of economic sanctions on Iran could transform the country into one of the most favorite destinations of steel scrap suppliers. The lifting of sanctions is expected to accelerate the growth in steel industry. As a result, demand for scrap steel is likely to escalate. According to an Iranian metals industry specialist, the country may likely be in need of at least 6 million tonnes of to feed the steel industry by 2025.

Speaking at the Rusmet scrap metals conference held recently in Moscow, Alireza Jafarinejad noted that the country’s steel sector output is likely to grow rapidly. Technological upgrades at various steel making facilities are likely to result in enhanced mill output. The domestic steel sector in the country has already welcomed expertise from Europe and other regions of the world. The number of foreign trade missions has witnessed dramatic rise over the past few months.

The country’s steel production has reported robust growth during the past one year. Iran has exported around 3 million tonnes of crude steel and steel products during the year, significantly higher by 23% when matched with the previous year. The projected jump in crude steel output by the country will escalate the demand for steel scrap, Jafarinejad added.

Meantime, the country has a long way to go in achieving responsible recycling of electronics waste. Iran does not still have an organized collection and recycling network for discarded electronics. The country should focus more on developing e-waste collection infrastructure. At the same time, necessary awareness programmes must be launched to educate the public on the environmental benefits of responsible recycling.

The Rusmet Ferrous and Non-Ferrous Scrap Metals-2016 Conference was held Feb 29^th-Mar 1^st, 2016 in Moscow, Russia. The event was attended by representatives from scrap metals recycling and trading companies, steel and non-ferrous metals manufacturers, scrap processing equipment suppliers, experts and analysts, industrial associations, and officials from Russia, CIS, and more than 37 countries.