Iran's Arvand trade zone welcomes foreign investment

Iran's Arvand Free Trade Zone (FTZ) is open to foreign investments, Deputy Director of the Zone Seyed Ali Mousavi announced on Tuesday.
"Arvand Zone is ready to accept and cooperate with foreign investors who are willing to take part in the Zone's trade, economic and industrial activities," Mousavi told FNA on Tuesday.
He noted that a sum of 15 economic and industrial projects kicked off in Arvand Free Trade Zone over last year.
"The volume of foreign investment, especially by European traders, increased last year," Mousavi added.
Arvand Free Zone sprawls on 172 square kilometers with access to road, railroad, marine and air transport facilities.
In April, a senior economic official announced that the value of foreign investment in Iran has witnessed a remarkable growth of 100 percent in the last Iranian year (ended March 20, 2014).
"The value of foreign investment in Iran last year reached $16 billion which shows more than 100 percent of growth as compared with the year before that, which was $7.5," Iranian Deputy Economy Minister Behrouz Alishiri told reporters.
The Iranian deputy economy minister pointed to the influence of the Geneva agreement between Iran and the six world powers (the US, Russia, China, France, Britain and Germany) in November, and said, "We have held talks with trade delegations from France, Italy and China in Tehran, which shows their interest and eagerness for presence and investment in Iran."
He underlined that about 800 foreign investors have entered Iran in recent months.
Alishiri pointed to the willingness of foreign investors to return to the Iranian market, and said, “The negative effects on (the economies of) the countries that have imposed sanctions on Iran have been much greater than Iran and we have learnt big lessons from the sanctions, including quitting oil-dependent economy as has been required by the Fifth Five-Year Economic Development Plan (2010-2015).”
He referred to the programs of the Iranian Investment Organization for attracting further foreign investment in the current Iranian year (started March 21, 2014), and said, “Dispatching economic attaches to target countries to persuade and enhance attraction of foreign investment, paving the way for the visit of World Bank experts to Iran, holding joint economic commission with China … are among the organization’s measures.”