The country's June output stood at 2.43 million tons to witness year-on-year growth of 5.3%, according to the Brussels-based international trade body for the iron and steel industry.
Iran remains the world’s 10th biggest crude steel producer.
The country is placed between Brazil (ninth) with 14.24 million tons of production in H1 and Vietnam (11th) with 10.85 million tons.
The world’s 62 steelmakers produced a total of 873.134 million tons of steel over the six-month period, down 6% YOY.
Global steel output stood at 148.295 million tons in June, indicating a 7% decrease YOY.
China was the world’s largest crude steel producer with 499.01 million tons of steel output in the six-month period, up 1.4% YOY.
The giant steel producer was followed by India with 43.13 million tons, Japan with 42.21 million tons, the United States with 36.2 million tons, Russia with 35.25 million tons, South Korea with 32.6 million tons, Germany with 17.46 million tons and Turkey with 16.29 million tons.
Iran’s crude steel output stood at 31.9 million tons in 2019, according to Worldsteel, up 30.1% YOY.
Crude steel is defined as steel in its first solid (or usable) form: ingots and semi-finished products (billets, blooms and slabs). This is not to be confused with liquid steel, which is steel poured.
Capacity Expansion Plans
Iran aims to become the world’s sixth largest steel producer as per the 20-Year Vision Plan, which targets annual production capacity expansion to 55 million tons and 20-25 million tons of exports per year by 2025.
The country’s current steel production capacity stands at 35 million tons per year.
According to a recent report by Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organization on development of under-construction steel production units, a total of 19.1 million tons will be added to Iran’s annual steel production capacity by the time the development of all these units is complete in the fiscal 2023-24.
The addition of 19.1 million tons by the time the under-construction projects come on stream to the current capacity means the aggregate output capacity will reach 54.1 by March 2024, only 900,000 short of the target, for reaching which Iranian steelmakers will have one more year.
MSC Tops List of Iranian Steelmakers
With 4.72 million tons of output, Mobarakeh Steel Company had the largest share of steel production in Iran during the first three months of the current fiscal year (March 20-June 20).
The company produced over 2.12 million tons of finished steel during the period, to register a 4% decline compared with last year’s corresponding period.
In addition, close to 2.6 million tons of semi-finished products were produced by MSC, up 10% year-on-year, the Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organization’s latest report shows.
MSC’s total output over the month ending June 20 exceeded 1.54 million tons: 660,490 tons of finished steel, down 9% YOY; in addition to 880,461 tons of semi-finished steel, up 9% compared with the corresponding period of last year.
Located in southwestern Isfahan, Mobarakeh Steel Company is the biggest steel producer in Iran and the Middle East and North Africa region.
In terms of finished steel production, MSC was followed by Esfahan Steel Company (ESCO) with 571,121 tons (down 4% YOY), Khouzestan Oxin Steel Company with 230,787 tons (up 8% YOY), Khorasan Steel Company with 117,401 tons (down 32% YOY) and Azarbaijan Steel Company with 89,213 tons (up 11% YOY) during the first quarter of the current fiscal year.
In terms of semis, MSC was followed by KSC with close to 1.03 million tons (up 4% YOY), Esfahan Steel Company with 586,009 tons (down 7% YOY), Chadormalu Steel Company with 254,165 tons (down 3% YOY), South Kaveh Steel Company with 232,596 tons (down 21% YOY) and Khorasan Steel Company with 218,037 tons (down 21% YOY).
The above-mentioned steelmakers, considered heavyweight manufacturers in Iran, produced a total of 9.27 million tons of steel (semis and finished) during the three months under review.
A total of 3.57 million tons of finished steel products, including hot- and cold-rolled coils, rebar, beams, pipes, wide and galvanized sheets, were produced by these steel mills during the period under review to register a 1% YOY rise.
They produced 5.70 million tons of semi-finished steel, including ingot, bloom and billet, during the two months to witness an 8% rise YOY.
Overall, Iranian steelmakers produced 12.5 million tons of semi-finished and finished steel products in Q1 to register a 2.21% year-on-year increase.
According to the Iranian Steel Producers Association’s latest report, semi-finished steel made up 7.14 million tons of the total output, up 3% YOY.
Billet and bloom made up 4.12 million tons of semi-finished production while slab output hit 3.02 million tons to register a 3% decline and a 12% rise respectively YOY.
As for finished steel, the output increased by 1% YOY to reach 5.33 million tons.
Flat steel products had the lion’s share of finished steel production with 2.67 million tons, down 1% YOY. Hot-rolled coil made up 2.3 million tons of the production in this category, showing a 1% rise compared with the similar period of last year, followed by cold-rolled coil with 655,000 tons that also registered a 1% rise YOY and coated coil with 322,000 tons (down 25% YOY).
Long steel products had a 2.66 million-ton share in the output of finished steel products, posting a 4% growth YOY. Rebar had a major share with 2.17 million tons (up 5% YOY), followed by beams with 297,000 tons (down 1% YOY) and L-beam, T-beam and other types with 193,000 tons (down 5% YOY).