China eager to invest
$2.7b in Olefin 12: NPC
TEHRAN (PIN) -– National
Petrochemical Company (NPC) Managing
Director Gholam-Hossein Nejabat here Tuesday
said that China was keen to make a 2.7
billion dollar investment in Olefin 12 plan
in Iran.
Talking after an East Asia-Pacific states
forum, he said the Iranian and Chinese
officials held new round of negotiations,
whose main topics revolved around a 2.7
billion dollar investment in Olefin 12 plan
and investment in downstream and upstream
oil projects in Iran. Nejabat said, “China
is the first country the Iranian party will
pay a visit to hold official talks.”
According to the NPC chief, the company’s
output in the current Iranian calendar year
(started March 21, 2007) will reach 23
million tons.
“To this end, Iran’s presence in foreign
countries with the aim of doing marketing of
petrochemical products plays a determining
role,” he added. The port of Hong Kong was
one of the world’s main markets for selling
petrochemical products, said the official,
adding, “We plan to have a strong presence
in all fields related to trade and
investment in the port.”
Nejabat said NPC would welcome foreign
investments in the petrochemical sector,
adding the company was determined to boost
its economic cooperation with foreign
countries through improving relations with
Iranian ambassadors abroad.
He said Iran was holding talks with overseas
enterprises on implementation of
petrochemical projects worth 9.4 billion
dollars. “Most of negotiations have resulted
in signing memoranda of understanding and
establishing companies. We are also active
in every sector that has the capacity to
export technical and engineering services.”
The managing director said scores of
projects, including Arya Sassol
Petrochemical Complex with an annual one
million ton ethylene production capacity and
Mehr Petrochemical Complex aiming to produce
heavy polyethylene, were under construction
in collaboration with investors from South
Africa, Thailand, and Japan.
“NPC has also made investments in the
Philippines and India; and has outlined a
host of plans to have a strong presence in
Venezuela, Oman, and Uzbekistan,” he
revealed.
Shifting to the development of petrochemical
industry in the eastern, western, and
central parts of the country, Nejabat
expressed hope the company would manage to
build a complex in each province as
President Mahmud Ahmadinejad had already
ordered. “Iran accounts for 12 percent of
the Middle East’s petrochemical products and
0.7 percent of the world production,” said
the deputy minister, adding, “The 20-year
Outlook Plan has targeted 34 percent share
of the Middle East and 6.2 percent of the
international output.” The official said a
50 billion dollar fund would be needed for
achieving the objectives of the Outlook
Plan, adding, “We invest 12.5 billion
dollars in each Five-Year Economic
Development Plan and the total investment in
the four plans amounts to 50 billion
dollars.”
Pointing to the parliament’s approval on
removal of subsidies on petrochemical
products, Nejabat argued that the measure
would make the petrochemical market sound.
The Fourth Development Plan had allocated
12.5 billion dollars for petrochemical
projects, said the ranking official, adding
the projects were underway according to the
Fourth Plan.
The NPC predicted that 35 petrochemical
projects would come on stream by the end of
Iranian calendar year 1393 (March 20, 2015).
Iran is the second largest petrochemical
producer in the Persian Gulf littoral
states, standing after Saudi Arabia, and
will retain its position until 2010.
The inauguration of the projects in question
by 2015 will considerably promote its status
not only in the Persian Gulf region, but in
the world.