A Chinese investment firm is set to spend $2 billion on the construction of an oil refinery in the northern Mazandaran Province, the deputy head of the province's Investment Center said.
"The Chinese company has applied for the permits and all the administrative procedures have been carried out," Mousa Qasem-Pisheh was also quoted as saying by IRNA on Monday. He did not specify the name of the Chinese firm.
"When the project goes on stream, the foreign investment volume in the province will observe a sharp hike," he added.
Iran plans to raise its refining capacity to 3.2 million barrels daily by attracting investments worth $14 billion in the next few years, most of which will be provided by foreign financiers. Projects include establishing new facilities and renovating dilapidated refineries.
The country reached a preliminary agreement worth $3 billion in July 2017 with the South Korean-Japanese consortium to develop Siraf Refining Park, a major downstream project in the city of Siraf in the southern Bushehr Province.
China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation signed an agreement worth $1.3 billion with last year for reconditioning Abadan Oil Refinery in the southern Khuzestan Province. The refinery, which was once one of the world's largest, was heavily damaged during the 1980-88 Iraq-imposed war.
East Asian firms are expected to continue their activities in Iran's oil sector after the US withdrew from the Iran nuclear deal. This is especially because European companies are being very cautious regarding projects and investments in Iran, for fear of inadvertently breaking sanctions the US intends to reimpose on Tehran in August.
Other Ventures in Mazandaran
Qasem-Pisheh noted that in the current fiscal year (started March 21), permits to build three power plants in Mazandaran Province have been granted to German, Chinese and Austrian companies.
"The projects will collectively cost $37 million. The German firm is building a 12-megawatt power plant in the province in collaboration with a domestic contractor, Electro Bonyan Company, with an investment of €5.3 million," he said.
"The Chinese and Austrian firms have received the permits to establish two 15 MW power plants with an investment of $32 million."
Pointing to the government's efforts to attract foreign investments in the power industry, Qasem-Pisheh said the Energy Ministry has guaranteed the purchase of electricity from privately-owned plants.
According to the official, during the last fiscal year, foreign firms invested over $90 million in the province in different energy sectors, including the construction of a 100-MW power plant, greenhouse and water electrolysis facilities.
"The province's foreign investment in the last fiscal observed a 10% increase compared with the year before," he added.
The Caspian Sea littoral province has a huge potential for modern power generation, especially via harnessing renewables. This can bring prominent players to the country.
Qasem-Pisheh said 27 licenses have been issued for foreign projects worth $554 million in the province over the past two decades, of which 23 projects have been completed.
According to Qasem Shahabi, the managing director of Power Distribution Company of Mazandaran, 55 zones have been identified in the province for developing solar power plants, which await finance and project plans.
Iran's Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Organization had earlier announced that international investors have proposed over $4 billion worth of renewable power projects since the lifting of sanctions.
