Investment volumes in units with establishment permits and operating licenses show a respective growth rate of 50% and 282.2% compared with the similar period of last year, the latest report released by the Ministry of Industries, Mining and Trade shows.
Establishment Permits
A total of 27,953 establishment permits were issued over the nine months under review, registering a 40.3% year-on-year growth. These projects are expected to create 627,548 jobs, 37.8% more compared with last year's corresponding period.
Khorasan Razavi Province with 2,750, Yazd Province with 2,481 and Fars Province with 1,767 had the largest share of the establishment permits issued during the period.
The southern Khuzestan Province, with more than 353.02 trillion rials ($1.39 billion) worth of expected investments for 1,155 establishment permits, has attracted the highest amount of investments. This registers an 82.4% hike compared with the corresponding period of last year.
The number of establishment permits issued for industrial units located in free trade and special economic zones decreased by 59.9% to 101.
Investments worth 69.82 trillion rials ($274.9 million) were made in these projects to generate 4,895 jobs, marking an 83.6% and 62.7% YOY decline respectively.
The field of “other non-metal minerals” saw the highest number of establishment permits (3,532), which also generated the highest number of jobs (68,082).
The largest amount of investment in these units is expected to be made in projects related to chemicals production with close to 474.3 trillion rials ($1.86 billion). The volume accounts for 13.3% of all investments made in projects, for which establishment permits were issued during the three quarters.
Operating Licenses
A total of 5,083 operating licenses were issued during the period under review, which shows an 8.3% YOY increase. These projects are expected to create 97,012 jobs, indicating a 28.6% rise compared with the corresponding period of last year.
East Azarbaijan Province with 358, Khorasan Razavi Province with 346 and Isfahan Province with 325 had the largest share of all operating licenses issued during the nine months.
The southern Khuzestan Province, with more than 571.64 trillion rials ($2.25 billion), attracted the highest volume of estimated investment in projects with operating licenses. The figure shows a whopping 7,114.5% upsurge compared with the similar period of last year and accounts for 47% of the total investments made in projects with operating licenses.
The number of such licenses issued for industrial projects located in free trade and special economic zones stood at 378, indicating a 12.5% growth YOY. Close to 265.3 trillion rials ($1.4 billion) worth of investments are estimated to have been made in these projects to create 17,867 jobs, registering a 561.5% and 53% hike respectively YOY.
The field of chemical production saw the highest number of operating licenses, namely 703. The field of food and beverages created the highest number of jobs (9,528) over the nine-month period.
The highest volume of investments in this regard were made in projects related to the production of coke and oil derivatives with 564.12 trillion rials or $2.22 million, accounting for 46.4% of all investments made in industrial units with operating licenses.
The number of greenfield projects for which operating licenses were issued stood at 2,416, some 189 of which were for those located in free trade and special economic zones, indicating an 8.8% rise and 9.6% decline respectively YOY.
A total of 2,289 permits were issued for launching brownfield projects, 189 of which were located in FTZs and special economic zones, showing a YOY increase of 7.2% and 48.8% YOY, respectively.
Mineral Production Permits
A total of 462 mineral production permits were issued during the period, registering a meager 3.8% increase compared with the similar period of last year.
These permits are expected to create 3,704 jobs, which indicate a 0.3% decline compared with the same period of last year.
The nominal mineral extraction capacity of the projects stands at 37.16 million tons, which shows a 98.8% hike compared with last year’s corresponding period.
The provinces of Khorasan Razavi with 41, Fars with 40, Markazi with 36, Isfahan with 33, Yazd with 27 and Kerman with 26 had the largest share of mineral production permits issued during the period.
These permits are expected to create the largest number of jobs in Fars Province (395), Kerman Province (334) Khorasan Razavi Province (329), East Azarbaijan Province (232), Isfahan Province (203) and Hormozgan Province (199).
The provinces of South Khorasan, Hormozgan and Khuzestan with a total of 15.34 million tons, 3.13 million tons and 2.26 million tons respectively had the highest volume of nominal extraction capacities.
A total of 367 exploration permits were issued during the nine months ending Dec. 20, 2020. The figure shows a 1.4% rise compared with the corresponding period of last year.
Exploration costs stood at 910.5 billion rials ($3.58 million), registering a YOY increase of 8.4%.