Since the beginning of the current Iranian year (March 21), the country's petrochemical companies have earned nearly $10 billion from the sale of their products to foreign countries, about 40% of which come from the Persian Gulf Petrochemical Industries Company, managing director of the company said.
“PGPIC earned over $4 billion in the first seven months of the current year,” the Oil Ministry’s news agency Shana also quoted Abdol-Ali Ali-Askari as saying.
“With this amount of sales, PGPIC ranks 23rd among the top 100 chemical companies in the world now,” he added.
Referring to the importance of the petrochemical industry for the country, the official said this industry can provide a lot of value added to the country by developing downstream industries.
“The annual output of PGPIC increased from 20.5 million tons during June 2020-21, to 22.2 million tons in the fiscal 2021-22, showing an 8.2% growth,” he said.
“The export value of petrochemical products of the company has increased by 87% from $2.78 billion to $5.2 billion in the financial year ending on June 21.”
Ali-Askari noted that 28 ongoing projects worth $15 billion are underway in PGPIC and about 70% of the projects are being carried out with the help of domestic companies.
With the completion of projects, the annual output of the company is expected to reach 50 million tons in six years.
PGPIC has been first in the country for several years in such indices as sales index, market value, export volume, profitability and generation of value added. It has invested over $2.3 billion in various projects in the past three years, despite sanctions imposed by the US on the company.
In May 2018, the US pulled out of the nuclear deal signed between Iran and six world powers in 2015 and later imposed new sanctions.
The US Treasury Department in June 2019 announced new restrictions on Iran's petrochemical sector that applied to PGPIC and 39 of its subsidiaries and foreign agents.
This slowed down the progress of PGPIC projects but did not dislodge it because domestic companies and manufacturers have been filling the gaps and supplying a major part of the equipment.
As Iran’s largest petrochemical company with 60 subsidiaries, PGPIC accounts for around 42% of the national petrochemical production, which is about 70 million tons per year.
PGPIC is a public holding company that manages natural gas processing plants and chemical factories, as well as oil and polymer companies.
The petrochemical industry has played a key role in Iran’s economic growth, as it creates value-added and reduces the sale of oil and gas on which the economy has been dependent for decades.
With abundant hydrocarbon reserves and new private sector investments, Iran is working hard to maintain its global status in the key sector and broaden its scope.
A large variety of petrochemicals are produced in Iran, for which there is high international demand. They are exported to 30 Asian, European and South American countries.
