Iran’s petrochemical exports exceed $10 billion

TEHRAN,March 13(MNA) - Iran exported over $10 billion worth of petrochemical products in the first 11 months of the current Iranian calendar year, which began on March 20, 2012. The exported products amounted to 14.5 million tons in weight. Iran’s annual petrochemicals production capacity stands currently at 56 million tons. Over 31 million tons of petrochemicals have been produced since the beginning of the current Iranian year. In November 2012, IRIB quoted National Petrochemical Company Managing Director Abdolhossein Bayat as saying that as much as $80 billion in investment opportunities have been identified in both the upstream and downstream sectors of the Iranian petrochemical industry, which is taking great steps toward development. China and countries in Western Europe are the main recipients of Iran's petrochemical exports, followed by countries in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, the Indian subcontinent, Africa, and Latin America, he noted. Iran is seeking new markets for its petrochemical products. Toward this end, the NPC has been identifying new export targets for the past two years, and boosting exports of polymer products is on the agenda. In April 2012, Bayat said that Iran exported $14 billion worth of petrochemical products to 60 countries during the previous Iranian calendar year (March 2011-March 2012). He added that $10.5 billion of oil revenues will be allocated for the development of the national petrochemical industry.