Addressing a ceremony to launch a methanol to propylene semi-industrial unit on Thursday, Behzad Mohammadi said the projects have been categorized among the second the third petrochemical leaps, adding they will supply propylene, methanol, benzene and ethylene among other items.

“We must move towards diversifying the products of the industry and try to make the country's petrochemical industry stable and resilient,” he said.

The CEO of the National Petrochemical Company stated that the capacity of the petrochemical industry in March 2020 was 66 million tons and now it is more than 70 million tons. Of this amount, 22 million tons worth $10 billion were exported and about 8 million tons worth $5 billion were sold on the domestic market.

He stated that in 49 projects in the second and third leaps of the petrochemical industry, seven propulsion and strategic projects with a total capacity of 810,000 tons are being implemented. Therefore, 20 propulsion projects have been defined in four branches: propylene, methanol, benzene and ethylene. With the development of these projects, 50% of the import of petrochemical products will be covered.

Mohammadi said 985,000 tons of propylene is currently produced in Iran, adding: "This figure will reach about 2 million tons by 2025 with the projects that are under way today, but with the implementation of propulsion projects, this figure will reach the 4-million-ton annualized output by 2026."