In an exclusive interview with Shana, Morteza
Shahmirzaei said: "The development policies of the petrochemical industry
are not and should not be subject to administrations and political tastes; any
industrial development program that is based on science and expertise and away
from tendencies and prejudices must be continued.”
He considered the revision of petrochemical
industry development plans that have not been developed or have not been done
based on expert studies as one of the priorities of the National Petrochemical
Company and stressed that the red carpet should be spread for investors and
industrialists of the petrochemical industry.
Shahmirzaei also touched on the readiness of the
National Petrochemical Company to bolster its international ties: "Whether
the Vienna talks succeed or not, the general space for foreign investors to
join Iran's petrochemical industry has been prepared and preparations have been
made to increase international interactions in the petrochemical industry."
He said development of the value chain of the
petrochemical industry in order to produce the items needed by the country and
prevent imports is the most important plan of the 13th administration in the
development of the petrochemical industry.
The NPC CEO went on to add that 68 petrochemical
projects are planned for the 7th Development Plan, which require a total of
about $36 billion in investment, of which $8 billion to $8.5 billion has been
invested so far, with an average progress of 31 to 32 percent.
“Fortunately, there are good conditions for
providing the financial resources, while we see favorable conditions in terms
of international space. Since petrochemical projects are implemented by the
private sector and holdings, and holdings are capable groups that invest in
implementation of projects from their income and profits due to continuous
production, so we estimate that there is no particular problem in terms of
finances,” he said.
The concern is to raise more capital for the 8th
Development Plan projects, which require about $50 billion in investment, and a
large number of value chain products will be produced in these projects. The
plans of the 8th Development Plan will be completed from 2027 to 2032 if the
seventh plan projects are not extended, the official went on to add.