Baku, Azerbaijan, Jan. 11
By Fatih Karimov - Trend:
Iran's petrochemical output will rise by 8 million metric tons by the end of the next Iranian calendar year (March 2016).
Abbas Sheri Moqaddam, Managing Director of National Iranian Petrochemical Company, said currently 45 petrochemical units are operating with a total output of 60 million metric tons, Iran's Shana news agency reported on Jan. 11.
The output is projected to hit 100 million tons by March 2017, he said, adding that petrochemical exports will hit $20 billion.
According to statistics, Iran accounts for 24 percent of petrochemical production in the Middle East.
In October 2014, Ali Mohammad Bosaqzadeh, an official with the National Iranian Petrochemical Company said about 10 million metric tons of the country's petrochemical production capacity is unused.
"After the international sanctions imposed on the petrochemical industry, we faced several problems in transportation and exports so the storage facilities are full," he explained.
Iran will launch 6 new petrochemical complexes by the end of the current calendar year (March 20, 2015).
Once the projects come on stream, the country's total petrochemical production capacity will increase by 2 million