TEHRAN – Three major petrochemical projects with a total investment of $1.6 billion were inaugurated in southern Bushehr and western Lorestan provinces on Thursday.

President Hassan Rouhani and Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zangaeh inaugurated the projects via video conferencing, Shana reported.

"Today we are witnessing the transformation of the petrochemical industry. Today's inaugurations were doubly gratifying because when we want to distance ourselves from crude oil exports and turn them into valuable products, one of the ways is to develop and transform the petrochemical industry,” Rouhani said.

He stated that 17 petrochemical projects will be inaugurated in the country this calendar year (started on March 20), and noted: “These projects are for setting the ground for and materializing the third leap of the petrochemical industry, which will take place in [the Iranian calendar year] 1404 (2025).”

"The value of our petrochemical production which stood at $1b has now reached $11b, and again it will increase from $11b to $25b, and from $25b to $37b; this means a great development in the country's petrochemical industry,” he added.

Addressing the ceremony, Zanganh also stressed that the total value of Iran’s petrochemical products will reach $37 billion by March 2024.

The oil minister noted that 27 petrochemical projects worth $17 billion will go operational across the country by March 21, 2021.

By the end of the year, the country's petrochemical production capacity will be increased by 25 million tons per year, he stated.

"One of the most important tasks of the petrochemical industry is to prevent the sale of raw materials by completing the value chain in the oil and gas industry, as well as supplying downstream feedstock for the domestic industries while preventing more than $5 billion in foreign currency from leaving the country annually."

Petrochemical industry plays a crucial role in Iran’s non-oil economy, as the petrochemical export is the second-largest source of revenue for the country after crude oil. Petrochemical exports already constitute nearly 33 percent of the country’s non-oil exports.

EF/MG