TEHRAN (Tasnim) � Based on Iran's Sixth Economic Development Plan, more than $15bln will be invested in the country's mineral sector, an Iranian mining official announced on Sunday.

The total capacity for production of steel in Iran should increase from the current figure of about 23 million tons to 40.3 million tons by 2020, Deputy Minister of Industry, Mine and Trade Mehdi Karbasian said.

He explained that the mining sector in Iran accounts for only 1 percent of the country's GDP, while the figure is around 16 percent in industrial countries.

In a bid to compensate for the current low amount of production, Iran plans to make an investment of over $15bln in the mining sector according to the Sixth Development Plan, he added.

The Iranian official announced that in the coming years, $450 million will be invested in the field of mining exploration.

Based on preliminary estimates, the total value of Iran's mineral resources is $700 billion, but when new explorations are made, the figure will be raised to $1.4 trillion, Karbasian stressed.

With 27 billion tons of explored and 57 billion tons of potential mineral resources, Iran is among the 15 top mineral powers in the world.

By Tasnim News Agency