Iran’s exports of steel products reached $2.9 billion in the first half of the the current Iranian calendar year (started March 21, 2024), Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration (IRICA) reported.

Steel products exports from Iran dropped by 14% in value terms in the six months to September 21, the IRICA said on Monday.

It said steel products shipments had also fallen by 13% in volume terms compared to the first half of the past calendar year to reach 5.7 million metric tons (mt).

Largest export shipments included steel ingots at $730 million followed by rebar (reinforcing bar) at $571 million and steel sheets at $210 million, said IRICA.

Industry sources have blamed electricity cuts imposed on steel manufacturers over the summer for the decline in Iran’s production and exports of steel this year.

Figures published by the Iranian Steel Producers Association in mid-September showed that the country’s exports of semi-finished steel, a key component in the production of the steel products needed in construction projects, had dropped by 5.4% year on year in the five months to August 21.

The Iranian government was forced to cut electricity supplies to industries, including steel manufacturers, in July and August, amid an unprecedented heat wave in the country that pushed demand for cooling to all-time records.

Iran has increasingly relied on exports of metals and mining products in recent years amid US sanctions that have led to restrictions on its oil exports.

Steel exports from Iran have increased in general in the past two years amid an ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine which has affected supplies from the two major steel producers.