Lifting of Sanctions Expected to Reduce Iran’s Petchem Export Costs by 10%

Lifting of the sanctions on Iran will reduce the country’s petrochemical export costs by 10 percent, said Abbas She’ri Moqaddam, director of Iran's National Petrochemical Company.

“We have no major problem about exporting petrochemical products. In fact, our main challenge is the transfer of foreign exchange,” Shana news agency quoted She’ri Moqaddam as saying on December 12.

Once the sanctions are lifted, the extra costs will not be paid anymore, he added.

Referring to the country’s main target markets for petrochemical products, he said: “Our attractive market is not Europe. East Asia, China and India are the major buyers of Iran’s petrochemical products.”

Managing director of Iran’s Petrochemical Commerce Company Mehdi Sharifi Niknafs said earlier that with lifting of bank, insurance, and transport problems, exporting of petrochemicals will be facilitated and costs will reduce notably.

Iran’s petrochemical sector has set an annual output target of around 129 million tons by the end of the country’s sixth five-year development plan (2021).

The country produced 44.5 million tons of petrochemicals in the past Iranian calendar year (ended on March 20, 2015), with over 10 percent rise from 40.5 million tons in its preceding year. 

Iran also exported 14.109 million tons of petrochemicals, valued at $8.205 billion in the first seven months of the current Iranian fiscal year, which started on March 21. Despite a 36.36% uptick in volume of petrochemical exports, revenues rose by just 0.01% compared to the same period last year, according to the Iran Customs Administration's report released on November 10.