Iran has made an important offshore gas discovery in its southern region, according to a report on Wednesday.

The offshore field has been discovered 3,900 meters deep in the ground, and it is said to be capable of production for 16 years of gas consumption in capital Tehran.

Seyed Saleh Hendi, the exploration manager at the National Iranian Oil Company, confirmed the discovery of the gas field, saying “the field was discovered after one year of constant exploration in southern parts of Iran.”

Further details about the gas field will be soon disclosed by the CEO of the National Iranian Oil Company, according to the report. /MNA /

Iran has made significant advances in the field of high tech, especially nanotechnology so that it has been ranked the first in the Middle East and is among the top countries in the world in nanotechnology field in the last decade, the official said.

Vice President for Science and Technology Sorena Sattari said that Iran has a remarkable position among the top countries in the world in the fields of nanotechnology, biotechnology, and aerospace.

Referring to Iran’s authority in the field of pharmaceutical technologies, he noted that Iran currently produces 98 percent of the country’s needed medicines domestically.

VP Sattari mentioned that the number of Iranian knowledge-based companies currently exceeds 4,500 companies in the country, adding that Iran has the largest knowledge-based ecosystem in the region.

In this regard, the Deputy of Research and Technology of Payame Noor University Mohammad Ali Karimi said that Iran has good position in the field of nanotechnology, adding that it has made remarkable progress in the field of high technologies such as nanotechnology over the past decades and it has been ranked the first in the Middle East.

Fortunately, Iran is currently among the top 10 countries in the field of nanotechnology articles and scientific achievements, he added.

The Head of the Strategic Technologies Development Headquarter of Vice-Presidency for Science and Technology Esmaeel Ghaderi Far also said that Iran has made progress in the field of Nano based drug and even exported Nano drug products to other countries. /MNA/

An official from Iran’s Ministry of Energy said the country would launch new power plants with a capacity of more than 3,800 megawatts (MW) until next summer.
“Based on the devised plans, 3,864 MW worth of new power plants will connect to the national electricity grid before the peak of the next summer,” Mohsen Tarztalab was quoted as saying by Press TV.

The announcement means that Iran could add some 34 terawatt hours (TWh) of electricity to its current production of above 300 TWh, as authorities seek to both increase exports to neighboring countries and increase stability of the domestic network over hot summer months.

He said the share of gas burnt in thermal power plants across Iran had topped 90 percent until March 2019, an increase of nearly 10 percent compared to the similar period three years ago.

The official said plans were in place to turn many of the current gas-fired power plants to combined cycle systems (one gas turbine followed by a steam turbine in sequence) to reach a target of 40-percent efficiency in production.

A report by the Ministry of Energy in August showed that electricity output in thermal power plants, which accounts for 80 percent of Iran’s total power generation, had surged by 8,991 megawatts, or 78 TWh in energy terms, over the past six years.

Iran’s total capacity of thermal power is around 550 TWh although government data shows generation hit a record high of 287 TWh last year. / Iran Daily /

Iranian athletes won three gold medals, one silver and one bronze at the Karate 1 – Premier League Moscow on Sunday.Sara Bahmanyar defeated German karate competitor Shara Hubrich 1-0 in the final of the Female Kumite -50kg.

Rozita Alipour edged Haya Jumaa from Canada 1-0 in the Female Kumite -61kg final.

And Zabihollah Poorshab defeated Ryutaro Araga of Japan in the Male Kumite -84kg final to win Iran’s third gold in the competition.

Sajad Ganjzadeh also lost to Georgia’s Gogita Arkania 7-3 in the final of Male Kumite +84 and claimed a silver medal.

Earlier on the day, Bahman Asgari Ghoncheh from Iran had claimed a bronze medal at the Male Kumite -75kg by beating his Spanish opponent Rodrigo Ibanez 3-1.

Karate 1 – Premier League Moscow brought 642 competitors together from 85 countries in Moscow, Russia. / Tehran times /

Iran’s value of non-oil trade with other countries stood at over $42 billion during the first half of the current Iranian calendar year (March 21-September 22), the head of Islamic Republic of Iran Customs Administration (IRICA) announced.

According to a report released by IRICA, the country exported 70 million tons of commoditized worth $20.948 billion and imported 16.5 million tons of products valued at $21.221 billion during the first half, IRNA reported on Sunday.

As reported, China, Iraq, Turkey, United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Afghanistan were the top five export destinations of Iranian products, while China, UAE, Turkey, India, and Germany were the five major exporters of goods to Iran in the first six months of the current year.

As previously announced by IRICA, the value of Iran’s non-oil exports stood at $44.3 billion in the previous Iranian year, while $42.6 billion worth of commodities were shipped into the country.

Iran shares border with fifteen countries, namely the United Arab Emirates, Iraq, Turkey, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Russia, Oman, Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan, Kuwait, Qatar, Kazakhstan, Armenia, Bahrain, and Saudi Arabia.

Based on the data published by Trade Promotion Organization of Iran (TPO), the value of trade with the neighboring countries stood at over $36.5 billion in the past Iranian calendar year, which is about 41 percent of the country’s total non-oil trade in the mentioned time span.

Iran plans to launch 15 mega export projects to identify more target markets, according to TPO former head.

Mohammadreza Modoudi said with the implementation of these projects, which mainly focus on the markets of neighboring countries, identifying professional trade and promoting export of non-oil commodities will be put on agenda, Mehr news agency reported.

The official further referred to the $1.7 billion positive trade balance in the country’s non-oil trade in the past Iranian calendar year (ended on March 20, 2019), and said this positive balance was achieved through cooperation with the private sector. / Tehran times /

Iran has been introduced by United Nations World Tourism Organization as the world’s second fastest growing tourist destination in 2018, with 49.9 percent growth in arrivals year on year.

Surpassing rivals such as Egypt, Nepal, Georgia and South Korea, Iran was ranked the second after Ecuador, according to the UNWTO annual report which details the countries where tourism has grown the most, and where it has fallen the furthest.

“Here’s one that gladdens the heart. Iran’s numbers might still be small – 7.3 million visitors in 2018, compared with, say, France’s 89 million – but they’re increasing sharply. More and more people are being drawn to one of the world’s most misunderstood countries, which can only be a good thing. Get there now before everyone else does,” the Traveller reported.

In the ranking, Iran is followed by Egypt which its foreign arrivals were up 36 percent, Uganda with 31.9 percent, Nepal with 24 percent, Slovenia with 23 percent, Vietnam with 19.9 percent, Georgia with16.9 percent, and South Korea with 15.1 percent.

Iran welcomed some four million foreign nationals during the first five months of the current Iranian calendar year (March 21 – August 22), which shows 30 percent hike, compared with the same period last year, according to official data compiled by the Ministry of Cultural Heritage, Tourism and Handicrafts.

The Islamic Republic attracted 7.8 million foreign travelers during the last Iranian year, which shows 50 percent growth year on year, the ministry announced earlier in September.

The 2019 Travel Risk Map, which shows the risk level around the world, puts Iran among countries with “insignificant risk”, a category where the UK, Denmark, Switzerland, Norway, and Finland are placed in.

The country boasts hundreds of historical sites such as bazaars, museums, mosques, bridges, bathhouses, madrasas, mausoleums, churches, towers, and mansions, of which 22 being inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage list

Under the 2025 Tourism Vision Plan, the country aims to increase the number of tourist arrivals from 4.8 million in 2014 to 20 million in 2025. / T.T/

A team of researchers at the Iranian National Algae Culture Collection have produced a kind of protein-rich juice out of algae with a somewhat astringent flavor.

Speaking to Mehr correspondent on Wednesday, Ali Khalili, the marketing manager at the Iranian National Algae Culture Collection (INACC), said Iran is home to one of the richest reserves in the world in terms of diversity of algae species.

He said a team of researchers at the INACC have recently used spirulina, a type of cyanobacteria which is often referred to as blue-green algae, to produce drinks.

“Spirulina is native to Mexico. We managed to mass produce it at the INACC and have now used it to make juice,” he added.

The alga is high in protein and minerals and can boost your defense against allergies, diabetes, and other conditions. It is high in vitamins and iron, too, he added.

According to him, the alga juice has an astringent flavor and is produced at the Science and Technology Park of the University of Tehran. /MNA/

Iranian film ‘Katyusha’, directed by Ali Atshani, has won the best feature and best cinematography awards at the 2019 Love International Film Festival (LIFF) in the US.

The festival’s Best Feature award went to Iranian film ‘Katyusha’, directed by Ali Atshani, while Mahmoud Atshani received the Best Cinematography award for the film.

‘Katyusha’ is about Khalil, known as Khalil Katyusha, who is a religious guy and member of Basij. He is forced to spend a couple of days with Arshia, the lousy rich boy. The different backgrounds and ideals make these two to make troubles for each other.

‘Katyusha’ was also nominated in four other categories, including Best Actor (Hadi Hejazifar), Best Supporting Actor (Ahmad Mehranfar), Best Director (Ali Atshani), and Best Screenplay (Mehdi Ali Mirzaee/ Ali Atshani)

Love International Film Festival (LIFF) focuses on bringing films and filmmakers from the international community whose work brings the world closer together and promotes love and healing through cinema. All proceeds for the 2019 LIFF will be given to the Lotus Light Children’s Charity, according to the event’s website.

The 4th edition of LIFF was held in Los Angeles, California from September 18th, 2019 through September 21st, 2019. / MNA/

Hassan Yazdani from Iran claimed a gold medal in the 2019 World Wrestling Championships on Sunday after his Indian rival Deepak Punia withdrew from the final because of injuries from previous rounds.

The Iranian freestyle wrestler, who won a gold medal at the 2016 Olympic Games, was scheduled to meet Punia in the 86kg final.

“My leg is swollen up and it is hurting. The eye is swollen too, but it happens in wrestling. I picked up both injuries during the first round. I am not fighting in the final (because of leg injury),” Deepak told Sportstar from Nur-Sultan on Sunday.

Iran’s freestyle team wrapped up the 2019 World Championships with two bronzes, one silver and one gold medal.

Alireza Karimi had won a silver in 92kg category while Younes Emami and Behnam Ehsanpour seized two bronze medals at the 70kg and 61kg, respectively.

Russia won the title with 190 points, followed by Kazakhstan (103 points) and the U.S (94 points).

Iran narrowly finished in fourth place with 93 points.The 2019 World Wrestling Championships were held in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan. /  T.T/

Iranian actress Mahtab Keramati, the star of acclaimed movie “Mazar-i-Sharif”, has been selected as the president of the 19th Imagineindia International Film Festival, which will be held in the Spanish capital of Madrid from May 17 to 31, 2020.

She won the award best actress at the 2015 Imagineindia for her performance in “Ghosts” by acclaimed Iranian filmmaker Dariush Mehrjui.

Keramati also was named best actress at the International Film Festival of Tamilnadu in Chennai, India in 2016 for her role in director Hassan Barzideh’s drama “Mazar-i-Sharif” about Taliban terrorism in Afghanistan.

Her fellow Iranian filmmaker Mehdi Rahmani will be in company with her on the jury, which also is composed of Indian film expert Modhura Palit, Polish filmmaker Hanna Polak and Afghan actress Leena Alam.

The Jury also includes Australian producer Bridget Ikin, Indian professor Anjali Monteiro, Kazakh filmmaker Olga Korotko, British-Indian writer and director Sandhya Suri, Kazakh producer Olga Khlasheva and German producer Daniela Creutz.

Iranian director Reza Mirkarimi’s drama “Castle of Dreams” will be competing in the official section of the festival, which also features the Indian movies “Bulbul Can Sing” by Rima Das, “Aamis” by Bhaskar Hazarika and “Aadhar” by Sumon Ghosh.

“Aga’s House” by Lendita Zeqiraj from Kosovo “Summer Survivors” by Marija Kavtaradze from Lithuania and “Brotherhood” by Pavel Lungin from Russia will be screened in the official competition.

In addition, “Driving Lessons” by Iranian filmmaker Marzieh Riahi will be screened in the short films competition. / T.T /