In a note published on Tuesday, Hassan Abbaszadeh, deputy Petroleum
Minister and NPC’s managing director, said the industry reflected the country’s
technological capabilities and reliance on domestic expertise.
“The petrochemical industry today is not only an economic pillar but
also a manifestation of national capability, Iranian engineering know-how and a
firm belief in a resilient economy,” Abbaszadeh said, adding that it served as
a model for utilising domestic capacity, indigenous innovation and efficient
management.
He said completing value chains and developing downstream projects had
been a key strategy in recent years, pursued alongside efforts to improve
efficiency, create sustainable jobs and protect the environment.
Abbaszadeh noted that the petrochemical sector contributed to
government revenues, pension funds, capital market growth and employment. He
said about 145,000 people were directly employed in petrochemical production,
while downstream industries reliant on petrochemical feedstocks had created
nearly 1.19 million jobs.
He added that in 1403 (2024/25), Iran’s average daily natural gas
consumption stood at about 755 million cubic metres, of which only around 68.3
million cubic metres per day were used by the petrochemical industry, including
both feedstock and fuel.
The sector also plays a key role in adding value to Iran’s oil and gas
resources by converting them into chemical and polymer products, helping reduce
reliance on crude exports and strengthen resistance to sanctions, Abbaszadeh said.
According to the note, Iran’s petrochemical industry generated around
$13 billion in export revenues in 1403, accounting for roughly a quarter of the
country’s non-oil exports. A significant portion of these earnings was
repatriated to the central bank, while the rest was used to finance imports of
raw materials, equipment and services and to support development projects.
Abbaszadeh said further completion of value chains would help curb raw
material exports and create greater value for Iran’s economy.