TEHRAN - The head of Iran’s National Petrochemical Company (NPC) has said many foreign countries have been reaching out for cooperation with Iran’s petrochemical industry, Shana reported on Saturday.

Morteza Shahmirzaei said Iran’s achievements in the petrochemical industry have prompted some countries to call for specialized cooperation with this sector or to buy goods, equipment, and catalysts from Iranian companies.

Iran has enormous capacities to develop its petrochemical industry, Shahmirzaei said, adding, “Considering the plans for the increase in the petrochemical production capacity and the number of target markets in the coming years, we have to take steps toward creating further added value and developing end products through cooperating with foreign holdings and petrochemical companies.”

“In line with the completion of the value chain, we can turn polymers and chemicals into products needed by other downstream industries to decrease the selling of raw materials and to produce goods with more added value,” the NPC head added.

Shahmirzaei further underlined the significant role of the efficient and highly-skilled workforce as one of the main factors of development in the country’s petrochemical industry.

The petrochemical industry plays a crucial role in Iran’s non-oil economy, as 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.

Back in May, Iran unveiled a document on the development and completion of the value chain of the petrochemical industry in the presence of Iranian Oil Minister Javad Oji and Shahmirzaei.

All the country’s petrochemical companies and holdings should adjust their development plans in line with this document which was unveiled on the sidelines of the 14th Iran Petrochemical Forum (IPF).

According to the NPC officials, if necessary, the document on the development and completion of the value chain of the petrochemical industry will be updated with the coordination of the NPC. In this way, according to the information in this document, investors can invest in Iran's petrochemical sector with more confidence.

EF/MA