TABNAK, Sep, 09: Petrochemical products are less targeted by US-led western sanctions on Iran and, therefore are easier to find a place in international markets, the MP said. He further noted building and developing petro-refineries must be in priority to bring more value added and currency for Iran.
Petro-refineries are considerably expanded and developed in so many countries, especially in East Asia.
Notably, Iran still faces so many challenges in selling crude oil. It is selling the product with lower price, but has to pay considerably more to import final products for internal use in the country.
By developing petro-refineries, Iran would earn oil-based products worth US$1.000 instead of selling crude US$80 per barrel, the parliamentarian said.
International energy companies predict that the demand for petrochemical products will increase significantly in the coming years, and therefore the development of petro-refineries seems a necessity in Iran.
Due to the country's benefit from oil and gas resources, the development of petro-refineries is much easier and relatively cheaper in Iran than other countries in the world, and the country can play a role in regulating the price of petrochemical products in the world due to its proximity to energy sources and its capacity for the development of petro-refinery.
And most importantly, if the country's petro-refinery capacity can be expanded to the level of crude oil feed produced in the country, the sanctions on Iran’s oil industry will be practically nullified.
It is why Iran is now serious and determined to develop its petro-refineries, although in previous years, despite the country’s upstream economic plans based on preventing the sale of crude oil and natural gas, and developing refining capacity instead to boost production of export products, there seemed to be no will to build petro-refineries.
