TEHRAN - The Makran coastal region in southeast Iran will turn into the country’s third-largest petrochemical hub with an investment of €20 billion by the end of the Seventh National Development Plan (2026), according to the head of the National Petrochemical Company (NPC).

Speaking to the press on the sidelines of a visit to Makran Petrochemical Town in Chabahar County, Sistan-Baluchistan Province, Morteza Shahmirzaei said: “Makran region has special features for petrochemical development and it is planned that during the seventh National Development plan, we can have 20 billion euros of investment in this region.”

“Makran is much closer to international markets than Assaluyeh and Mahshahr hubs due to its proximity to the Oman Sea,” Shahmirzaei was quoted by the NPC news service Nipna as saying.

Back in June 2023, the managing director of the Negin Makran Petrochemical Development Company, as the developer of the industrial and non-industrial infrastructure of the Makran Petrochemical Town said attempts are underway to start the export of products by petrochemical companies based in Makran to international markets within a year.

“Makran Petrochemical Town is under construction on an area of 1,200 hectares in the Chabahar Free Zone and another 600 hectares in the northern side of the town will be also allocated to the development of the downstream petrochemical chain in the near future,” Alireza Moniri Abyaneh said.

About $13.7 billion have been invested in the construction of Makran Petrochemical Town which includes 18 production units which, upon completion, will create employment for thousands of people, the official added.

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.

According to Shahmirzaei, the company plans to increase its annual petrochemical production capacity to 200 million tons over the next 10 years.

In this regard, Iranian Oil Minister Javad Oji said that more than 100 petrochemical projects with a total investment of about $70 billion have been defined and will be implemented across the country.

Oji noted that the country will also be completely self-sufficient in producing the catalysts used in the petrochemical industry by the end of the current government administration's incumbency (August 2025).

EF/MA