* China imports less iron ore from Iran over Aug, Sept
* Iran plans to impose 25% export tariff on iron ore
* China is biggest buyer of Iranian iron ore
By Min Zhang and Shivani Singh
BEIJING, Sept 21 (Reuters) - China has taken fewer shipmentsof iron ore from Iran over August and September, according toRefinitiv Eikon data, as additional export tariffs due to beimposed by Tehran have dampened risk appetites in the world'sbiggest steelmaker.
Iran's deputy minister of industries said earlier this monththat exports of all steelmaking raw materials will be slappedwith a 25% tariff to meet demand in domestic steel industry,according to Iranian state-backed media Press TV on Sept. 9.
The tariffs, which will cover various products from Iran'siron mills, including iron ore and concentrates, will come intoeffect from Sept. 23, the Press TV report said.
Iran shipped 319,920 tonnes of iron ore to China in August,down 37.8% from July and 23.4% lower than a year earlier,according to Reuters calculations based on vessel-tracking andport data compiled by Refinitiv.
In September so far, China has taken 129,534 tonnes of ironore from Iran, according to the same calculations and data.
"Not many traders buy iron ore from Iran because of the U.S.sanctions," said Zhao Yu, an analyst with Huatai Futures, addingthat the freight charges are also high.
Two Chinese traders told Reuters they could only use cashand telegraphic transfer as payment methods, as it was "toosensitive" to go through banks for transactions with Iran.
"The main advantage of Iran ore is it's low cost," said atrader who buys 2 million to 3 million tonnes of iron ore fromIran a year.
"If (Iran's) prices go up (from the tariffs), they can betotally replaced by other mainstream ores," he said when askedwhy China did not buy more before the tariffs go into effect.
Also, the tariffs were announced on a short notice, he said.
"There's not enough time to buy, load and clear customs."
The trader said his company was considering substitutingiron ore from Africa or Southeast Asia for Iranian ore.
Iran's Ministry of Industry, Mine and Trade and customsdepartment did not respond to requests for comment.
Iran shipped a total of 17 million tonnes of iron ore tooverseas markets in the fiscal year ended March 20, 2019,according to data from the Iranian Mines and Mining IndustriesDevelopment and Renovation Organization.
China, the world's biggest iron ore market, consumes about90% of Iran's exports of the material. China bought 14.7 milliontonnes of iron ore from Iran in 2018, accounting for 1.4% of itstotal imports.
"Applying such export tariffs from this month is too early,"said Keyvan Jafari Tehrani, an independent analyst of the ironand steel industry.
"I doubt whether the quantities (Iran) used to sell to Chinacan be absorbed totally by the local market at the beginning."(Reporting by Min Zhang and Shivani Singh in Beijing;Additional reporting by Parisa Hafezi in Teheran; Editing by TomHogue)