Tehran- Sadr Tamin Investment Company (TASSICO) and the Resistance Economy Organization of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army signed a memorandum of understanding to expand bilateral cooperation, participation, and investment in the field of exploration, extraction, processing, and exploitation of mines.

The signing ceremony of the MoU was held on Tuesday, October 17 and attended by Seyyed Solat Mortazavi, minister of Cooperation, Labor and Social Welfare, Rear Admiral Habibollah Sayyari, the coordinating deputy of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army, Alireza Asgarian, deputy minister of Labor, Mirhashem Mousavi, the managing director of Social Security Organization, Ebrahim Bazian, CEO of Social Security Investment Company (Shasta), second brigadier general Mohsen Golsorkh Haq, head of the Resistance Economy Organization and Amir-Hossein Naderi, CEO of Sadr Tamin Investment Company.

Bazian, Shasta’s CEO, said at the beginning of the ceremony that Sadr Tamin Investment Company was one of the valuable groups of the Social Security Investment Company, stating that the holding specialized in mining and mining industry, owning and controlling Esfahan Steel Company, Shahid Bahonar Copper Company, Tabas Parvardeh Coal Company, Iran China Clay Industries Company, Iran Salts Mining Company, Pars Tamin Mines Development, Sadr Tamin Exploration and Drilling Company, etc as their parent company.

He added that rich mines in the province of Sistan and Baluchestan had been under the ownership of the Shasta and the first gold production of this collection would be out within the next two or three months in the presence of the minister of Cooperation, Labor and Social Welfare. Bazian explained that there were gold mines in the Kurdistan region too, which were under the control of Sadr Tamin Company.

Also, Iran Salts Mining Company as one of TASSICO’s subsidiaries was producing more than 85 percent of sodium sulfate in the country, he said, adding that the holding’s other subsidiary, Iran China Clay Industries Company, was producing more than 85 percent of Iran’s kaolin. Also, 90 percent of the country’s coal was located in the Tabas region, of which 85 percent was owned by a subsidiary of Sadr Tamin Company, Bazian noted.

“Sadr Tamin Investment Company owns shares in Mobarakeh Steel Company, National Iranian Copper Industries Company, and Iran Central Iron Ore Company too,” he clarified.

Referring to the transformational and developmental steps in the gold, copper, coal, and other metal products, the Shasta CEO stated that there were good capacities in the exploration, extraction, processing fields, and value chain of mining and metal industries could be created “Sadr Tamin Investment Company stands at the top of Shasta’s investments based on the future plans,” the chief executive of Shasta said.

Bazian pointed out that Sadr Tamin Investment Company had signed effective memorandums of understanding with several important groups, that owned valuable mining areas. “Now, in this very valuable opportunity, another memorandum of understanding will be signed with you dear ones from the Resistance Economy Organization of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army to exploit [mines in] valuable border areas of the country,” he said and added, “We believe that we can have a win-win approach on this important matter considering the security, economic and value creation [concerns] as well as the capabilities of Sadr Tamin [Investment Company].”

Naderi, CEO and vice chairman of the board of directors of Sadr Tamin Investment Company, welcomed the dignitaries and guests, expressing satisfaction about the signing of the MoU with the Resistance Economy Organization. “There are about 60 mineral elements in the country and About six percent of the world’s resources are in our beloved Iran, of which only one percent is being exploited,” he revealed.

Naderi said that the development of the mining sector had been neglected because of the country’s rich oil and gas resources. The investments that should have been made in this area did not happen, the official said, explaining that however, attention was diverted to the mining sector and investment in the field domestically, especially after the cruel sanctions were imposed on the country.

More attention was paid to the technology, especially for exploitation of the strategic rare earth elements, which would create high added value for the country, Naderi said, elaborating that for example, in the field of gold, the country’s consumption stands at 100 tons per year now while the total gold production is nine tons and the total capacity is 14 tons.

Sitting in the gold zone, Iran enjoys many capacities in this regard, he explained. “It is noteworthy that most of the country’s gold mines are located along the borders in the economically deprived areas.”

Naderi believed that the Sadr Tamin Investment Company managed to make the largest amount of mineral investment in the eastern parts of the country under the revolutionary government (of President Ebrahim Raisi). He added that the holding invested more than 10 trillion rials in the Taftan complex located in the southeastern province of Sistan and Baluchistan since last year and the first gold bar would be extracted from this mine shortly.

TASSICO’s CEO explained that the mine would produce 500 kg of gold at the first stage and the production would increase to 500 and 5000 kg at the second and third phases, respectively.

“This means that the Sadr Tamin [Investment Company] targets [producing] gold from Sistan and Baluchistan province as equal to the total gold production of the country,” Naderi said and added, “The job that will be generated through this investment will basically affect the region economically.”

Naderi emphasized that there was another gold mine in Saqqez whose factory was under construction by the revolutionary government, hoping that it would be inaugurated by next year.

The vice chairman of the board of directors of Sadr Tamin Investment Company stated that the army had not made significant moves in the field of mining due to the existing restrictions so far.

Considering the army’s new approach, Naderi said, TASSICO asked the army to make Sadr Tamin Company its executive arm in the mining and exploration sector because the company was highly specialized and employed the most qualified team in the field of mining, technology, and mining processing.

“We hope that there will be a jihadi work in all the areas belonging to the Islamic Republic of Iran Army following the signing of the memorandum of understanding and the people of our country will benefit from the natural resources that God has given us with the joint investments that we make in the exploration field,” he said.

Thanking Mr. Mousavi and Mr. Bazian, CEOs of Social Security Organization and Shasta, for their support, he said that thank God, there was no limit now for investing in mining and mineral industries. The Taftan Gold Project Company was listed in the commodities exchange with a progress of 80 percent and all the activities of Sadr Tamin Investment Company in the mining and mineral industries were carried out in the capital market to remain completely transparent.

Second Brigadier General Golsorkh Haq, the head of the Resistance Economic Organization of the Islamic Republic of Iran Army, said, for his part, that the army was one of the bodies that had the highest natural resources under its control, but it was not allowed to enter the economic activities in the past.

New measures were taken by the honorable commander of the army in line with the orders of the commander-in-chief to get the army involved in the economic activities under four conditions transparency, financial and economic discipline, no conflict of interest with the private sector, and full compliance of the country’s laws, brigadier general Golsorkh Haq explained.

Therefore, the Resistance Economy Organization was formed and all the economic activities were set to be carried out under its supervision, he stressed.

Brigadier General Golsorkh Haq stated that given that the policy of the commander-in-chief of the army was to support the Islamic republic’s system, the national economy and no conflict of interest with the private sector, the mining sector, which had a high value-added, could be an area–that with the support of big players such as the Ministry of Cooperation, Labor and Social Welfare and Sadr Tamin Holding—could serve this purpose while helping the residents of the deprived areas by developing their regions and contributing to the national economy and the country’s development.

Appreciating the goodwill and positive gesture as well as the jihadist approach of TASSICO’s chief executive Amir-Hossein Naderi, he hoped that major steps would be taken in this regard thanks to the efforts of Sadr Tamin Company and its senior managers.