Mehr News Agency

Addressing a session on introducing investment opportunities in the rail sector of Iran to German companies, Mohammadzadeh said economic ties between Iran and Germany have been increasingly growing over the past two or three years, especially after the recent visit to the European country by Iran’s Minister of Roads and Urban Development Abbas Akhoundi.

He described Germany as one of the most influential countries in the European Union, especially in the economic sector, adding "a major priority in Iran's foreign policy is to strengthen ties with Germany in political economic dimensions." The official later stressed that volume of economic relations between Iran and Germany had observed a significant growth by reaching the figure of 2.9 billion euros.

Head of the Islamic Republic of Iran Railways said Iran was the second largest economy in the Middle East and North Africa emphasizing that the country's GDP had reached $412 billion in 2016 indicating an economic growth of 6.4 per cent.

He later described Iran as the safest and most stable country in the region saying "Iran, with certain advantages like  young population, can become a successful market for foreign investment. What's more, given that trade volume between Iran and the EU has increased by more than 60% in the post-JCPOA era, the European Union is considered the second largest export destination of Iran, with 13% of Iran's exports being shipped to EU member states.

Mohammadzadeh identified Iran's priority for 2016-2021 as development of rail transport adding "in the meantime, we intend to increase the share of rail industry from 12 to 30 percent in cargo sector and from 8 to 20 in the passenger one.

Deputy Iranian roads minister later asserted that Iran also intended to boost its share in transit of goods between the world's economic poles. "The north-south corridor connecting the Persian Gulf to northern Europe and the east-west corridor connecting East Asia to Europe have been activated with the same purpose."

The official went on to state that Iran's railway company also sought to develop electric lines with the aim of managing energy consumption, building high-speed lines as well as improving technical ability of engineering in the rail industry of Iran, especially in the field of railroad equipment.

"Presently, contracts worth seven billion dollars have been signed for investment in the Iranian rail transport," he concluded.