Iraq announced that it will stop importing Iranian cement as of July 1, but Iran held talks with Iraq so that exports of cement will be resumed, the chairman of the association of Iranian cement exporters said.
Iran exported cement to Iraq at $50 per ton, Abdolreza Sheikhan told Fars News Agency on Sunday. He said the two sides have agreed to increase the price by $5.
In April, the Islamic Republic News Agency of Iran reported that the country will establish a cement factory in Iraq with an annual production capacity of 2 million tons.
The factory will be established completely using Iranian expertise and technology.
Some $245 million will be invested in the project and the factory will come on stream in two years time.
The factory’s products will be exported under Iranian brand names.
In January, Iran-Iraq Joint Chamber of Commerce Secretary General Jahanbakhsh Sanjabi said that
the value of annual trade between the two countries was about $10.7 billion in the previous Iranian calendar year (March 2011- March 2012), adding that Iraq is Iran’s main trading partner in regard to non-oil goods.
In August 2012, Iranian Industry, Mine, and Trade Minister Mehdi Ghazanfari said that Iran was ready to launch joint ventures with Iraq in the trade, transportation, and insurance sectors.
He added that Iran was ready to invest in infrastructure projects in Iraq and to help meet the demands of its neighbor in the industrial, mining, and agricultural sectors.
By Albawaba
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