The Arvand Free Zone Organization, in cooperation with the Iranian Mines and Mining Industries Development and Renovation Organization (IMIDRO), is producing petroleum coke, IRNA reported. IMIDRO has invested 15 trillion rials ($547.5 based on official exchange rate) in the project which is to be developed on a 50-hectare site. The plan will produce 310,000 metric tons of petcoke per year. Petcoke is one of several low value solid by-products of the oil refining process which is considered a strategic raw material in producing aluminum anodes and is also used in steel and titanium smelting industries. The total petroleum coke market is relatively small with 100 million metric tons produced per year, worth around $5-6 billion. It is highly influenced by the five giant industries of oil refining, power generation, cement, steel, and aluminum.
