Iran Ships Gabbro Consignment to Qatar for 1st Time

EghtesadOnline: Some 7,500 tons of gabbro have been exported from Bandar Lengeh Port in the southern Hormozgan Province to Qatar for the first time, the Ministry of Roads and Urban Development’s news service reported on Sunday, citing data from the Ports and Maritime Organization of Hormozgan Province.

News ID: ۷۸۲۱۲۷

14 March 2018

Gabbro is a dark, coarse-grained plutonic rock of crystalline texture. It often contains valuable amounts of chromium, nickel, cobalt, gold, silver, platinum and copper sulfides.

Ocellar (orbicular) varieties of gabbro can be used as ornamental facing and paving stones that are also known by the trade name of “black granite”. A popular type of graveyard headstone used in funerary rites, it is also used in kitchens and their countertops. Bandar Lengeh is located 240 kilometers west of Bandar Abbas, the provincial capital of Hormozgan. Iran has been ramping up exports to Qatar since a number of Arab states led by Saudi Arabia abruptly severed diplomatic relations with Doha early June and imposed a blockade on the Persian Gulf country, accusing it of supporting terrorist groups. The Qatari government has denied the accusation, blasting the blockade as unjustified and a violation of international law. Director of Bandar Lengeh Ports and Maritime Organization Qasem Askari said last week that more than 1,300 tons of glass sheet worth 10 billion rials ($222,568) were exported from Bandar Lengeh to Qatar for the first time, Financial Tribune reported.