NIPC announces plans to fetch $100b investment in petchem projects
A senior official from the National Iranian Petrochemical Company (NIPC) announced on Tuesday that the total required investment for 144 licensed projects in the strategic industry is approximately $100 billion, reporting on plans to attract domestic and foreign investment in the sector.
Investment Manager of the NIPC, Hamidreza Ajami, announced plans to attract domestic and foreign investment in the industry, emphasizing, "Completing semi-finished projects and developing the petrochemical value chain requires diverse solutions to overcome financial and currency challenges," IRNA reported.
Ajami said that petrochemical development plays a significant role in the country's economic, social, and national security, and relying solely on domestic investment leads to limited growth. To increase competitiveness in global markets, attracting foreign investors must also be on the agenda.
He pointed out that 25% of the country's non-oil exports and 19% of its industrial value-added returns are provided by the petrochemical sector. He reminded that the industry, with advanced technology, is not only the intermediary link between the upstream oil sector and downstream industries but also serves as a major factor in job creation and entrepreneurship within the country.
According to the official, over $87 billion has been invested in the petrochemical industry from 1978 to 2022. Nineteen percent of the figure originated from foreign sources, and over 11% came from the National Development Fund and other domestic and foreign resources.
He noted that $22 billion in new investment is also projected for the Seventh Development Plan, stating, "Currently, some of these projects have become operational, and we are striving to complete the remaining projects."
Elaborating on the current status of petrochemical projects, Ajami added, "Out of the total 144 projects, 20 projects with $11 billion investment have achieved over 70% progress; 32 projects with $22 billion are between 20% and 70% complete; and 92 projects with $67 billion have less than 20% physical progress."
The investment manager emphasized the necessity of attracting foreign investment, stating, "Recently, within a memorandum of understanding with the Investment Organization and Economic and Technical Assistance of Iran, it was agreed that opportunities in this industry would be introduced to international investors more than ever before. Additionally, leveraging the capacity of BRICS and the Shanghai Cooperation Organization for developing collaborations is being pursued."
He referred to the petrochemical industry's resilience against sanction pressures, noting, "Despite international difficulties, the path of project implementation through domestic resources and foreign credit lines has continued, and a number of projects will become operational this year."
Ajami listed the most significant investment attractions in Iran's petrochemical industry as the availability of legal and supportive infrastructure, a large domestic and regional market, access to open waters, specialized human resources, and the technological capacity of knowledge-based companies.
He pointed to completing semi-finished projects, developing mid-stream and downstream projects, flare gas collection, and increasing foreign currency generation as the main investment priorities of the company, emphasizing the simultaneous use of experiences from both domestic and foreign partnerships.