While the global steel industry in 2025 was grappling with a 2 percent decline in production and a broad-based downturn, the industrial giants of the Middle East chose a different path. The World Steel Association’s 2026 report delivers a clear message to international markets: Mobarakeh Steel not only preserved its position amid turbulent conditions, but by rising to 43rd place among the world’s top steel producers, it has also emerged as a symbol of industrial resilience. This advance came at a time when the region was facing some of the most complex geopolitical challenges and security threats, including attacks on industrial infrastructure.
Global crude steel production reached 1,849 million tonnes in 2025, reflecting the continuation of the downward trend seen since the historic peak of 2021. At a time when traditional producers such as Japan, Russia, and South Korea recorded lower output, Iran, with 1.9 percent growth and 32 million tonnes of steel production, consolidated its position among the world’s top 10 steelmakers.
At the heart of this national performance, Mobarakeh Steel, with output of 10.29 million tonnes, improved its global ranking from 44th to 43rd. This achievement is more than a statistical milestone; it demonstrates the company’s ability to manage crises and sustain its supply chain under exceptionally difficult operating conditions.
One of the most significant strengths in Iran’s international steel profile, with Mobarakeh Steel as its driving force, is the country’s rise to first place globally in direct reduced iron (DRI) production. In 2025, Iran produced 37.2 million tonnes of DRI, accounting for nearly one-quarter of global output of this strategic product. This leadership is not merely quantitative; it also represents a qualitative advantage in the transition toward green steel.
While 69.4 percent of the world’s steel is still produced through the traditional and highly polluting blast furnace route, Iran’s technological structure has enabled 91.9 percent of its steel production to be generated through the electric arc furnace (EAF) route. The carbon intensity of this method, at 1.66 tonnes of CO2, is significantly lower than the 2.66 tonnes associated with the blast furnace route. This places Mobarakeh Steel in a strong position to adapt to increasingly stringent carbon regulations, including the European Union’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM).
Mobarakeh Steel’s rise in the global ranking has been achieved against a backdrop of energy constraints, technology sanctions, and direct physical threats. Unlike many global competitors operating in more stable environments, the company has relied on indigenous expertise and a strategy of continuity of production under risk conditions to serve as an anchor of economic stability in the regional steel value chain.
This vast industrial complex has demonstrated that even amid military and geopolitical tensions, Iran’s industrial capabilities do not come to a halt; rather, they continue to grow.
In 2025, Iran maintained its position as the world’s tenth-largest steel exporter, with 13.5 million tonnes of steel exports. Particularly notable was Iran’s fourth-place ranking in net exports, at 12.0 million tonnes, placing it after China, Japan, and South Korea.
These figures show that Mobarakeh Steel and Iran’s steel industry, beyond meeting domestic demand, with per capita steel consumption at 219 kilograms versus the global average of 209 kilograms, have become a strong and influential player in export markets.
Although reaching 43rd place globally is a major achievement, Mobarakeh Steel’s untapped potential points to an even brighter future. As the global industry moves toward hydrogen-based and low-carbon steel production, the company’s direct reduction infrastructure could become a springboard for leadership in the regional green steel market.
Today, Mobarakeh Steel is sending a clear message to global markets: it is no longer merely a national or regional producer, but a resilient force in the steel industry, one that has turned geopolitical crises into an opportunity to consolidate technological strength and enhance its global standing.
Sources: World Steel Association (worldsteel), 2025 and 2026 statistical reports, and exclusive analyses by the Steel Future Studies Center.