Jam Petrochemical Company in the southern port city of Asalouyeh in Bushehr Province produced 250,000 tons of polymer products in the first five months of the current fiscal (March-Aug.), of which 110,000 tons were sold to local firms, the company’s commercial manager said.
"JPC is committed to supplying domestic petrochemical plants with raw materials, namely hexanol, ortho-xylene, phenol, styrene, ethylene glycol and vinyl chloride," Saeed Shirdel was quoted as saying by NIPNA, the news agency of the National Petrochemical Company.
In recent months there have been constant complaints that instability in the currency market has tempted producers to focus only on export while most local manufacturers are suffering from acute shortages, especially in the strategic food and beverage industries.
According to the manager, JPC's output in 2017 stood at 600,000 tons of which 240,000 tons were sold domestically.
"The company has plans to double production by 2021," Shirdel said, adding that JPC products, especially high density polyethylene, are exported to 20 countries. The company is the largest producer of butadiene in the country.
Petrochemical Output
According to Mohammad Ali Bosaqzadeh, deputy for production control at the NPC, total annual petrochemical output in Iran is close to 55 million tons and when the new plants “become operational, the production level should reach 65 million tons.
Giving a breakdown, he said 18 gas to fuel and chemical production units —aka GTX— are being constructed in Qeshm and Chabahar in the southern regions. Ten PDH units — propane dehydrogenation — that will produce propylene from propane are underway in Asalouyeh.
"Lordegan Urea Fertilizer Plant in the Chaharmahal-Bakhtiari Province, Ilam Olefin Petrochemical Complex, Miandoab plant in West Azarbaijan Province, Kaveh Methanol Complex in the port city of Bandar Abbas and phase 1 of Bushehr Petrochemical Complex are almost complete," he said.
Iran's petrochemical infrastructure is concentrated in the southern provinces close to the Persian Gulf where water supply is less of a concern and proximity to international waters makes transport and shipment cost effective.
Downplaying the impact of new US sanctions, Bosaqzadeh said NPC will find a way to circumvent the unjust restrictions and develop the key sector accordingly.
“Regarding comparative advantage in this sector, such as abundant natural gas for feedstock and domestic production that has significantly progressed over the years, the industry should not face major problems.”
However, he concurred that new petrochemical ventures may take longer to complete due to the US penalties, but exports will not be affected because supply and demand for petrochemicals in the global markets are balanced. "It would be next to impossible to ignore Iran's production simply because many foreign companies secure their petrochemical needs from Iran."
According to NPC data, local petrochemical production increased from 40 million tons per annum five years ago to 55 million tons in fiscal 2017-18.
