It is reported that Chador Malu produced 10.1 million tonne of iron ore concentrate, fines and lumps in the last Iranian year 2008-2009 which is up by 33.2% compared with the previous year.

Mr Mahmoud Noorian MD of Chador Malu Mining and Industrial Company said that CMIC exploited 15.8 million tonne of iron ore in the last Iranian year, showing an increase of 50% as compared with the previous year.

As per report Chador Malu holds a deposit of about 400 million tonne of iron ore of which 320 million tonne is extractable. CMIC operates the mine at Chador Malu as an open-cast pit, with an annual production capacity of 12 million tonne of iron ore. This is part-processed on site to produce up to 7.1 million tonne per year of iron ore concentrate. CMIC also produces up to 1 million tonnes of crushed high grade iron ore per year for domestic blast furnaces and for export.

CMIC is continuing its development at Chador Malu. The initial three lines at the beneficiation plant built by Japan’s Kobe Steel in 2006 have already been supplemented with a fourth, which was inaugurated by Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in February 2009. The construction of a fifth line was slated to begin in the spring. Kobe Steel was also commissioned last year to supply a 3.4 million tonne per year palletizing plant.

Further expansion is clearly on the agenda for CMIC as the private sector takes a greater role in the Iranian mining sector and as the government seeks to sustain the growth of national steel output. Once the plant has five beneficiation lines, it will have an annual production capacity of 8 million tonne of concentrate.

(Sourced from SteelOrbis)