DMEA: Iran to launch Gachsaran petrochemical plant

Iran is set to launch a large-scale petrochemical plant that will rely on domestically sourced equipment for around 80% of its needs, according to a senior official in state-owned Persian Gulf Petrochemical Industries Co. (PGPIC), Hassan Neshanzadeh.

Neshanzadeh – whose position in PGPIC requires him to lead planning and business operations – said Gachsaran Petrochemical Co. – located in southern Iran – would soon be inaugurated at a ceremony attended by the country’s president, Ebrahim Raisi. He said that the facility would increase Iran’s ethylene production by 1mn tonnes per year (tpy), mentioning that the plant had cost Iran $1.43bn. He added that the “ bulk of the equipment used in the plant has been provided from Iranian suppliers,” noting: “Gachsaran is the first polyolefin unit in Iran with home-made furnace burners.”

The plant will rely on 1.25mn tonnes of ethane gas as feedstock, supplied through a 90-km pipeline from Bidboland Gas Refinery located in Khuzestan region, with the country’s Energy Ministry additionally pledging to supply 50 MW of electricity and 12mn cubic metres per year of water to the plant.