Speaking to NIPNA, Tahmasbi said the National Petrochemical
Company (NPC) played an important role in shaping industry policies, adding
that completing the value chain, bringing unfinished projects to completion and
attracting investment were essential to turning the sector into a stronger
driver of economic growth.
He said Iran had substantial potential to expand its
petrochemical industry, given its abundant feedstock resources, skilled
workforce and industrial infrastructure, and that the country should make full
use of these capacities.
The industry should not focus solely on producing and
exporting basic petrochemical products, Tahmasbi said. Instead, its main
priority should be to develop the value chain and manufacture products with
higher added value.
He added that completing unfinished petrochemical projects,
expanding downstream industries and introducing appropriate investment
incentives could attract significant capital to the sector.
A more complete domestic production chain would increase
foreign-currency earnings while reducing the economy’s reliance on exports of
raw materials and basic products, he said.
Tahmasbi said the petrochemical industry could become one of
the main drivers of Iran’s economic growth in the coming years, provided that
policymaking remained stable and investors had a clear outlook for the sector’s
future.