Investment in Iran’s petrochemical industry will have a reasonable return, a high-ranking official of the China National Petroleum Corporation said on Saturday.
The official also told IRNA, on condition of anonymity, “An added advantage of investing in Iran’s petrochemicals is its access to most international markets.”
Stressing that Iran has one of the largest proven gas reserves in the world, the official said, “It is beyond doubt that investing in Iran’s energy sector is potentially profitable provided infrastructures are developed and provisions are made to export at least 50% of petrochemical products.”
According to the expert, oil extraction costs in Iran are lower than in other Middle East states, which can definitely add to its being lucrative. “Iran’s petrochemical production capacity stands at around 60 million tons,” he said, noting that a wide range of products are manufactured in Iran, most of which are used domestically. The 12th Iran Petrochemical Forum was held in Tehran on Dec.14, in which Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh made the announcement that Iran plans to attract $70 billion in petrochemical investments.
“Petrochemical projects will be developed via both domestic and foreign investments,” he said, urging internationals to register their company in Tehran or choose Iranian partners to facilitate operations. Zanganeh also stressed that companies making investment in downstream petrochemical sector, particularly in gas-to-propylene projects, will benefit from 30% discount on feedstock prices.
Petrochemical output reached 51 tons at the end of the Fourth Five-Year Plan (2006-11) and the volume is expected to rise to 62 million tons in the current Iranian year (ending March 19, 2016).
