Tehran, Aug 20 - Iran Thursday commissioned its first indigenously built cargo ship in the country's southern port city of Hormozgan, FARS news agency reported.

President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad flagged the vessel's maiden journey in the Persian Gulf at a ceremony held in Hormozgan. The ship named Iran-Arak is built at a cost of about $50 million.

The vessel, built by the Iranian Shipbuilding and Offshore Industries Company (ISOICO), is 185 metres long, 30 metres wide and 18 metres tall. It weighs over 7,000 tonnes and can carry over 30,000 tonnes of cargo.

Iran will stop purchasing foreign-built ships in order to boost the domestic shipping industry, Ahmadinejad said at the launching ceremony.

Ahmadinejad said the next indigenously built ship will be named 'Iran-Shahre Kord'.