India has taken measures to boost its relations with Iran, especially in the petrochemical industry, India’s ambassador in Tehran said.
“India is prepared to expand its economic relations with Iran in the post-sanctions era and there is no obstacle to achieving this end … Petrochemical sector is one of the industries the two countries can cooperate in,” Saurabh Kumar was quoted as saying by Shana.
Kumar underscored the abundant petrochemical feedstock in Iran as an advantage and said the two countries can bolster their cooperation level now that sanctions are lifted, adding that Indian investors and industrialists are ready to participate in Iran’s petrochemical projects.
"Iran's petrochemical sector needs more than $50 billion in investment in the short run, as plans call for boosting annual petrochemical revenues to $22 billion in the next Iranian year (starting March 20)," Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh said in a statement this month.
Trade between the two countries has been volatile in recent years due to sanctions, but following Iran’s nuclear accord with the six major powers last year and the lifting of international sanctions against Iran on Jan. 16, the Persian Gulf country has become a destination for high-ranking economic and energy delegations from many countries, including India.
Concurrent with the removal of sanctions, Iran exported a 260-ton-cargo of butene-1, produced in Mahabad Petrochemical Company, to India, Mohsen Majidi, managing director of the company, told IRNA.
Iran and India have announced that if the two countries expand their banking relations, bilateral trade can reach $25 billion.
200% Rise in Sulfur Sales
Managing director of Shahid Hasheminejad Gas Processing Company announced on Monday that the company’s sales of sulfur bentonite—a fertilizer—in the past 11 months, has witnessed a 200% increase compared with the corresponding period of last year (ended March 20, 2015).
“In the 11 months of this year, we have sold over 5,830 tons of the fertilizer, while 1,921 tons were sold during last year’s similar period,” Nasser Eslami added.
The company, which is Iran’s largest producer of sulfur, has raised its output by 8,000 tons to reach 571,000 tons in the same period. "The gas refinery has received 15 billion cubic meters of sour and sweet gas from Khangiran Gas Field, which is 42 mcm more than the volume received during last year’s corresponding period," he said.
It has also received 881 million cubic meters of gas during the past three months from Shourijeh gas storage facility in the city of Sarakhs in Khorasan Razavi Province. The volume was 774 mcm during the 11-month period of last year, according to the head of the company.
“This year’s 107 mcm gas rise helped supply clean energy to some of the northern and eastern provinces in the cold season,” he said. Shahid Hasheminejad Gas Processing Company supplies natural gas to the provinces of North Khorasan, Khorasan Razavi, South Khorasan, Golestan, Mazandaran and some parts of Semnan.
