Construction of Arg Petrochemical Complex in Mahshahr, Khuzestan Province, which was approved in 1996 to annually produce 100,000 tons of acrylonitrile, remains on hold.
The national project, which could be the key to Iran's self-sufficiency in the production of acrylonitrile and end imports, has made no progress over the past quarter century, YJC reported.
According to reports, the project needs $200 million, which is expected to be provided by the National Development Fund of Iran.
Acrylonitrile is the main monomer of composite fibers, generally called acrylic. It is an organic compound used to make other chemicals such as plastics, synthetic rubber, acrylic fibers, as well as machine-made carpets, blankets, clothing and the textile industry in general.
Most of the acrylonitrile production units in the world are licensed by the British chemical company INEOS, and due to the US sanctions Iran faces huge challenges in importing this product.
The US imposed economic sanctions on Iran in August 2018, targeting key industrial, banking, shipping and insurance sectors. In the May of that year the acrimonious US president, Donald Trump, tore up the landmark 2015 nuclear deal Iran had signed with the six world powers and in November imposed a second round of sanctions, targeting the energy sector.
In 2017, Arg Petrochemical Company signed a contract with a Chinese company (name not known) for importing technical knowhow for the production of acrylonitrile.
According to the contractual terms, the Chinese side in addition to providing the knowhow was to help in the construction of the plant.
Performing basic engineering, training employees, and supervising the process was also to be done by the Chinese company.
However, after three years, no update has been released regarding the two-way cooperation. Sino-Iran political ties have grown in the past four decades, but Chinese companies in various key industrial and energy sectors have procrastinated and more recently have shied away from their commitments ostensibly due to the sanctions.
According to ISNA, petrochemical companies in Iran produced 30 million tons in the last fiscal that ended in March, of which 22 million tons were sold in global markets
“Exports earned $10 billion. Moreover, 8 million tons of petrochemicals worth $5 billion were sold in the domestic market,” Behzad Mohammadi, managing director of National Petrochemical Company said.
Regarding expansion programs for the key sector, he said 16 development plans are underway and six are projected to go on stream in the current fiscal at an estimated cost of $12 billion.
Already a major component of the global energy market, the role and significance of petrochemicals continues to grow. Demand for plastics – the most familiar group of petrochemical products – has outpaced almost all other bulk materials (steel, aluminum or cement), and has nearly doubled since 2000.
