Collected photo

TEHRAN, Dec 1, 2025 (BSS/AFP) - Iran has announced the discovery of a major 
gold deposit at one of the country's biggest mines for the precious metal, 
local media reported Monday.

The new vein structure was found at the privately owned Shadan gold mine in 
the eastern province of South Khorasan, which Fars news agency described as 
"among the country's most important".

The agency said the new reserves have been officially validated by the 
Ministry of Industry, Mines and Trade.

"The proven reserves of the Shadan gold mine in the east of the country have 
experienced a significant increase following the discovery of a vast gold 
vein," the report said.

It added that the vein holds some "7.95 million tonnes of oxide gold ore and 
53.1 million tonnes of sulphide gold ore."

The former is usually significantly easier and cheaper to mine.

Iran has not officially disclosed the amount of its national gold reserves 
but claims to have significantly increased its purchases in recent years.

In September, Iran's Central Bank governor Mohammadreza Farzin said the bank 
was one of the world's top five gold-buying central banks in 2023-2024, 
according to ISNA news agency.

Local media also quoted central bank official Yekta Ashrafi as saying that 
boosting the gold reserves would help bolster the country's economy under the 
weight of international sanctions.

Iran has 15 gold mines, with the largest being the Zarshouran mine located in 
the country's northwest.

Iran's economy has been crippled by sanctions imposed after the United States 
and Western capitals accused Tehran of seeking to weaponise its nuclear 
programme -- an allegation Tehran consistently denies.

The country's economy has come under further strain since the 12-day war 
triggered by Israel's unprecedented attack on Iran, during which the United 
States briefly joined Israel in striking Iranian nuclear facilities.

Gold is also a safe haven for many Iranians whose purchasing power continues 
to erode due to soaring inflation and the chronic depreciation of the rial 
against the dollar.

On Monday, the US dollar traded at around 1.17 million rials on the informal 
market, while the euro stood at about 1.36 million rials, according to the 
exchange-rate tracking sites Bonbast and AlanChand.