TEHRAN- Iranian port of Asalouyeh demonstrated some of its new changes to a group of reporters and journalists who visited the area during a two-day media tour organized by the National Petrochemical Company (NPC).

Asalouyeh in Iran’s southwestern province of Bushehr is home to a number of petrochemical complexes which receive gas and gas condensate feedstock from the giant South Pars gas field, which Iran shares with Qatar in the Persian Gulf.

The huge offshore field is estimated to contain a significant amount of natural gas, accounting for about eight percent of the world’s reserves, and approximately 18 billion barrels of condensate.

Iran’s petrochemical industry has witnessed prominent progress over the recent years in a way that “Arya Sasol Polymer Company, a major petrochemical complex in Asalouyeh, has one of the largest polymer production units in the region”, a director of the company told the journalists who visited different units of the company during their tour.

Also, after the implementation of Iran nuclear deal, NPC has received high willingness from European companies for cooperation with Iran in the petrochemical sector both in financing and licensing, according to Farnaz Alavi, the company’s director for planning and development.

Iran’s petrochemical production which stood at 46.4 million tons in the past Iranian calendar year (which ended on March 19, 2016), is anticipated to reach 50-51 million tons by the end of current calendar year (March 20, 2017), and is planned to rise to over 180 million tons in a course of ten years, Alavi said on December 10.

 ‘Urea, LPG major exported products’

Another site visited by the journalists was Pars Petrochemical Port from which products produced in the petrochemical complexes of the region are exported.

Sadeq Hajipour, one of the directors of the port, mentioned urea and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) the main products exported from the port and United Arab Emirates (UAE), India and Iraq the major export-destinations of the products.

He said each week one or two 40,000-ton vessel carry LPG from this port to the three mentioned countries.

The official went on to explain that Pars Petrochemical Port has three docks, one for export of LPG, the other one for condensate and the last one for bulk cargos such as polymer.

He said vessels with the capacity of 7,000-70,000 tons load cargos in this port.

Iran’s annual petrochemical exports, which stood at 18.8 million tons in the past calendar year, is forecast to be 20 million tons by the yearend, and the worth of petrochemical exports, which was $9.6 billion in the preceding year, is anticipated to reach $9 billion by the yearend, according to Alavi.

 ‘Asalouyeh welcomes foreign finance for welfare infrastructures’

Mohammad Safaian, the managing director of Pazargad Non-Industrial Operation Services Company, which provides welfare services in the region, said that his company welcomes any foreign investment to set up welfare infrastructures in Asalouyeh.

“A Canadian company will provide $4.5 billion finance for the establishment of an aqua park in the region in the next year and we are supposed to return the fund to this company in a course of five year,” he stated.

The official went on to explain that the operations his company conducts are aimed at two objectives, one is to provide welfare services to create incentives and encourage the people who work under the difficult weather condition of the region and the other one is to create jobs for the local people.

He referred to the establishment of a tourism hub in the region as one of the projects carried out by his company.

MA/MG