TEHRAN – Managing director of Iran’s National Petrochemical Company (NPC) says all the goals set, based on the country’s Sixth Five-year National Development Plan, for the petrochemical sector will be realized by the end of the Iranian calendar year 1400 (March 20, 2022).

Speaking in a press conference on Monday, Behzad Mohammadi said with the completion of 27 remaining projects of the petrochemical sector’s second leap, by the end of 1400 the country’s petrochemical production capacity will increase to 100 million tons (mt) from the current 66 mt.

“That is the goal set in the sixth national development plan,” Mohammadi said.

According to the official, the petrochemical industry’s incomes will also increase by $10 billion from the current $15 billion.

The deputy oil minister called the current Iranian calendar year (March 20, 2020-March 20, 2021) a golden year for the petrochemical industry, saying: "By the end of this year, 16 petrochemical projects will be put into operation.”

Petchem industry, Iran’s top source of non-oil revenue

Elsewhere in his remarks, Mohammadi pointed to the significant role of the petrochemical industry in the national economy and specified: "This industry is the top provider of foreign currency for the country."

He further emphasized that the development plan for the country’s petrochemical industry should be changed in accordance with global developments.

"It is necessary to move from a one-feed one-product plan toward a one-feed several-products strategy to create sustainable development in this industry," the official said.

“We must protect ourselves against the turbulences in the global market, so the most important solution for the country's petrochemical industry is smart development, which is also on the agenda of the National Petrochemical Company.”

Exports upward trend to continue

The NPC managing director elsewhere mentioned the stable exports by the country’s petrochemical complexes despite all the problems and limitations and said: “Fortunately, exports of petrochemical products are underway smoothly despite all the problems.”

Emphasizing on the sustainable production in the industry, the official said: "There were only fluctuations at the beginning of the current year due to the outbreak of the coronavirus, which were gradually stabilized; so that in [the Iranian calendar month of] Ordibehesht (April 20-May 20), the trade of petrochemical products in the country’s mercantile exchange increased by 11 percent compared to the last year.”

Mohammadi said that last year, the petrochemical industry received 35 million tons of feedstock equivalent to 800,000 barrels of crude oil per day from the oil industry, adding that the figure is going to increase to 1.5 million barrels when the new projects are operational.

According to the official, 23 million tons of petrochemical products worth $10 billion were exported in the previous year and 8 million tons worth $5 billion were consumed inside the country.

The total revenue of the country's petrochemical industry in the previous [Iranian calendar] year was $15 billion, of which about 85 percent was returned to the country’s domestic Forex Management Integrated System (locally known as NIMA).

EF/MA