TEHRAN, Dec. 13 (Shana) � Managing Director of National Petrochemical Company (NPC) Abbas Shari-Moqaddam said Iran plans to increase its petrochemical production to 70 million t/y by March 2017.
�In spite of international sanctions, Iran will increase its petchem products 4.5 million tons by end of current year (20 March 2016) and another 4.5 million tons by end of next year (20 March 2017),� he told the 12th Iran Petrochemical Forum (IPF 2015) which opened here on Sunday.
�The total value of petrochemical industry�s products will exceed 27 billion dollars,� he said at the international event which aims at introducing the industry�s capacities in the post-sanctions era.

The CEO referred to Iran�s advantages for investment including 2000-km long land and sea border, young educated labor force, its location in the crossroad of Middle East and Central Asia, and high engineering capacity as well as tax exemptions in the free trade zones.
�In addition to stability and security, Iran enjoys numerous advantages,� he added.

Some 97 foreign companies from 25 countries participated in IPF 2015 which shows an increase of 120 percent compared to IPF 2014.
More than 15,00 representatives from domestic and foreign firms including Australia, Azerbaijan, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Japan, the Netherland, Russia, and US are taking part in the event, according to NPC Vice President Mohammad-Hassan Peyvandi.

Participants in the IPF2015, one of the world�s most prestigious events representing the petrochemical industry, will discuss the core issues that the industry is facing with the emphasis given to Iran.

It provides an ideal platform where stakeholders and key players in the global petrochemical sector meet to exchange knowledge and address the latest advancements and best practices which are capable of shaping the future of the industry.

Following the historic nuclear agreement, Iran is also using the event to unveil its post-sanctions projects and plans for further expanding the Iranian petrochemical output capacity from the current 60 million t/y to over 138 million t/y in 2020 and eventually to 180 million t/y by 2025 with an investment of over $80 bn.

NPC seeks to use Iran�s natural gas reserves as raw material to produce propylene and propylene derivatives to provide feed for the expansion of local downstream industries.

By SHANA