Ibn Sina Port Petrochemical Plant in Mahshahr, Khuzestan Province, which was launched last week, will help complete the butane value chain and prevent butane crude sales, the National Petrochemical Company’s director for planning and development said.
“The plant has an annual production capacity of 80,000 tons, which are to be exported to international markets,” Hassan Abbaszadeh was also quoted as saying by Mehr News Agency.
Based on the plant’s nominal capacity, it is expected to generate $40 million a year, he added.
Using butane as feedstock, the plant will produce three important products, including maleic anhydride, isobutane and normal butane.
Globally, butane oxidation is the dominant production process used for maleic anhydride production.
An organic compound, maleic anhydride is a colorless or white solid with an acrid odor. It is used in the production of unsaturated polyester resin, coatings, pharmaceuticals, agricultural products, surfactants and plastics.
A large part of the domestic need for unsaturated polyesters is met by importing maleic anhydride. Now with the launch of Ibn Sina Petrochemical Company, the product will be manufactured domestically and there will be no need to import it.
Isobutane is a chemical compound used as a precursor molecule, for example, in the synthesis of isooctane.
Normal butane is a flammable, colorless, mostly nontoxic gas with a natural gas odor. It can be used for gasoline blending, as a fuel gas, fragrance extraction solvent, either alone or in a mixture with propane, and as a feedstock for the manufacture of ethylene and butadiene, a key ingredient of synthetic rubber.
Ibn Sina Port Petrochemical Plant is built on three hectares in Petrochemical Special Economic Zone in Bandar Imam Khomeini in the southwest. The plant’s location will allow easy access to BIK port and international sea lanes.
BIK is the closest port in southern Iran to neighboring countries. In view of the petrochemical zone’s easy access to the main railroad in Iran, the plant can export to companies in Turkey and Central Asia.
