TEHRAN – Iran’s petrochemical production capacity is going to increase from 92 to 131.5 million metric tons (mt) per year by the end of the country’s seventh National Development Plan (early 2027), Oil Ministry’s portal Shana reported.Back in May, National Petrochemical Company (NPC)'s Director of Planning and Development Hassan Abbaszadeh said 68 projects with a total investment of $35 billion and a capacity of 50 million tons will be implemented during the Seventh National Development Plan (2022-2026).The official put the average progress of the mentioned 68 projects at 30 percent and said: “Nine billion dollars have been spent so far and the sources for the rest of the required investment are also determined.”According to Abbaszadeh, Iran accounts for about 30 percent of West Asia’s total installed petrochemical capacity and three percent of the world’s total output.He further announced that the total capacity of Iran’s petrochemical industry will double by the end of the country’s eighth National Development Plan (2026-2030).Abasszadeh mentioned the NPC’s long-term programs for the development of the industry, saying: “We have a strategic plan for the next 10 years.”“In the eighth [national development] plan, we have defined 37 projects that require $40 billion in investment and 58 million tons will be added to the country’s petrochemical production capacity,” he added.The capacity of the country’s petrochemical production will reach 200 million tons by the Iranian calendar year 1411 (begins in March 2031), the official noted.Emphasizing that in the previous Iranian calendar year (ended on March 20), about 48 million tons of feed equivalent to one million barrels of crude oil per day were received by the country’s petrochemical plants, from which 65 million tons of products were produced.The petrochemical industry plays a crucial role in Iran’s non-oil economy, as petrochemical export is the second-largest source of revenue for the country after crude oil.

Petrochemical exports already constitute nearly 33 percent of the country’s non-oil exports.EF/