Fars is a major economic engine of Iran, excelling in agriculture, industry, mining, energy, and services.
Agriculture
Fars ranks 2nd in Iran for total agricultural production, contributing over 11% of the nation's output.
Ranked 1st in Iran for:
Grapes, dates, almonds, sour lemon, sweet lemon, pomegranate, figs, tomatoes, beans, cotton, barley, stevia, medicinal plants (greenhouse), aloe vera (greenhouse)
Ranked 2nd in Iran for:
Wheat, corn, onions, melon, watermelon, sesame, olives, citrus fruits, papaya (greenhouse)
The province also ranks 4th in livestock & poultry and 8th in aquaculture among non-coastal provinces. Two major agricultural logistics parks are planned under the national master plan.
Industry & Manufacturing
Fars is home to 3,849 active industrial units employing nearly 96,000 workers.
Key industrial strengths:
- Aluminum: Largest producer in Iran
- Steel: Complete production chain (iron ore → concentrate → pellets → sponge iron → ingots → finished sections)
- Petrochemical equipment & refinery components: Largest producer in Iran
- Mining machinery: Top producer in Iran
- Urea fertilizer & carbonates (light/heavy): Top producer in Iran
- Food industry: Especially tomato paste, flour, licorice extract (#1 in Iran)
- Ceramic tiles, GRP pipes, electrical components (wireless systems, high-voltage transformers)
Shiraz Industrial Town is one of Iran's largest industrial parks, with ~20,000 workers and 2,300 operational units.
Mining
Fars possesses 40 types of valuable minerals with 796 active mines employing over 10,400 people directly.
Refractory & industrial clay: 1st in national ranking (90% of Iran's production)
Decorative stones (marble, travertine, granite, onyx): 2nd in national ranking (18% of Iran's production)
Other exploited minerals include: chromite, lead, zinc, copper, iron ore, manganese, barite, gypsum, limestone, silica, and salt.
Oil, Gas & Petrochemicals
Fars ranks 2nd in Iran for natural gas reserves.
- 36,000 km of gas transmission and distribution lines
- Over 760,000 m³/hour gas supply capacity for heavy industries
- Major gas fields: Aghar-Dalan, Parsian-Lamerd, Sarvestan, Khesht
- Refineries: Halegan (Firouzabad), Shiraz, plus a gas condensate refinery
- Petrochemicals: 6 units approved along the Central Ethylene and Dena pipelines
Renewable Energy
Fars has the highest solar radiation absorption capacity in Iran, with:
- 3,400 hours of sunshine per year
- 2.5 – 5.4 kWh/m²/day of solar energy
This makes the province exceptionally attractive for solar power plant investment.
