nipc type public industry chemicals founded 1964 ; 52 years ago 1964 headquarters tehran iran key people marzieh shah daei chief executive officer bijan namdar zanganeh chairman products chemicals and intermediates industrial polymers fertilizers and metals revenue 20.4 billion usd 2015 number of employees 37 000 2015 website www.nipc.ir the national petrochemical company npc persian a subsidiary to the iranian petroleum ministry is owned by the government of the islamic republic of iran . it is responsible for the development and operation of the country s petrochemical sector . founded in 1964 npc began its activities by operating a small fertilizer plant in shiraz . today npc is the second largest producer and exporter of petrochemicals in the middle east . over these years it has not only expanded the range and volume of its products but it has also taken steps in areas such as r & d to achieve more self sufficiency . two special economic zones on the northern coast of the persian gulf have been developed to be home to the npc s new project . these two zones enjoy a good access to feedstock infrastructural facilities local and international markets and skilled manpower . despite pressure being exerted on the islamic republic over its nuclear program tehran expects to see a surge in petrochemical exports from 5.5 billion in 2007 to a total of nearly 9 billion in 2008 . 1 the fourth five year plan 2005 10 calls for a fourfold expansion of petrochemical output to 56 million tons per year . 2 contents 1 history 2 main activities 2.1 main products 3 expansion of the petrochemical industry 3.1 research and development 4 privatization 4.1 feedstock price 5 npc affiliate companies 6 foreign investment 6.1 special industrial economic zones 7 petrochemical exporting countries forum pecf 8 see also 9 references 10 external links history edit see also economic history of iran iran petrochemical industry dates back to 1963 . the first petrochemical complex to produce fertilizer kicked off then . in 1977 considered as initial development in iran petrochemical industry razi abadan kharg farabi bandar imam complementary phase of shiraz and iran carbon of ahwaz petrochemical units were put into operation in that year . prior to the iranian revolution the first major petrochemical operation in iran was the shiraz petrochemical complex which by 1979 would have had facilities that would have increased annual production capacity of urea by 500 000 tons nitric acid by 200 000 tons and ammonia nitrate by 250 000 tons while the largest petrochemical plant in iran prior to the revolution was the abadan petrochemical plant which by 1976 produced in excess of 100 000 tons of pvc 12 000 tons of dodecylbenzene and 24 000 tons of sodium hydroxide . 3 4 iran had surpassed a production of 5 million tons of hydrocarbon energy worth billions to the iranian economy and employing tens of thousands of domestic and foreign workers . 5 the iranian government in 1977 estimated that by 1985 iran would supply 10 % of the entire world s petrochemical production . 6 bandar imam khomeini petrochemical complex . other large ventures planned prior to the revolution included a second trans iranian soviet pipeline for natural gas named igat 2 valued at 2 billion an addition of a methanol production facility at the kharg petrochemical plant a joint venture with amoco known for producing over 250 000 tons of sulfur a year and the iran carbon company a joint venture with the cabot corporation the largest black carbon and rubber producer in the middle east . 7 8 9 10 the largest petrochemical and fertilizer plant in the world a joint venture between the government of iran and japanese conglomerate mitsui was to be constructed in the city of bandar e shahpur alongside the persian gulf . by 1979 the complex was half completed and was slated at a cost of 3.2 billion usd 1979 dollars . 11 12 the plant manager was to be m. arvin who formerly managed the shiraz and abadan plants . 13 due to getting involved in imposed war iran oil industry development experienced the lowest growth rate from 1979 till 1989 . in 1989 the country petrochemical products reached 2.4 million tons a year . since 1989 till 1999 petrochemical industry started to reconstruct and revitalize . isfahan arak khorasan orumiyeh and tabriz petrochemical complexes were constructed and bandar imam petrochemical complex was also developed . this happened at the end of country second development plan 1996 2001 and country petrochemical products surpassed 12 million tons per year . the fourth period 2006 2011 called stabilizing and sudden growth period started in 1999 and has been continued till now . the number of petrochemical facilities rose to 39 in the post islamic revolution era from only 6 in 1978 raising the output to 15.8 million tons in 2005 and more than 40 million tons in 2010 . 14 production sites at nouri borzouyeh pars jam zagros pardis and mehr produce petrochemical and polymer products . 15 in 2016 iran s petrochemical industry experienced at least 15 accidents possibly linked to cyber attacks . 16 main activities edit see also national iranian oil refining and distribution company npc s major activities are production sale distribution and export of chemicals and petrochemicals . currently allied with 56 subsidiaries including 9 production complexes and 18 project implementing companies npc operates as a mother company handling policy making planning directing and overseeing the activities of its subsidiaries and affiliates . as at end of 2009 iran s total annual petrochemical production capacity stood at 34 million tonnes . 17 in 2010 iran produced 26 % of the total petrochemical output in the middle east second behind saudi arabia . 18 the petrochemical industry accounts for 2 percent of the gdp 44 percent of the non oil exports and 55 percent of the industrial exports . in 2011 iran earned 12 billion dollars from exporting petrochemical products to over 60 countries . 19 the petrochemical industry accounts for 2 percent of the gdp 44 percent of the non oil exports and 55 percent of the industrial exports . the focus over the past few years has been on products which use natural gas as feedstock ; in particular methanol ethylene propane and butane . this is because the profit margins for crude oil and naphtha consuming petrochemicals are continuously eroding due to the competitiveness of the market and the high price of feedstock . national petrochemical company quantity thousand tons value million usd 20 product domestic sale quantity value 2003 exports quantity value 2003 chemicals 749 thousand tons 232 million 804 thousand tons 217 million fertilizers 896 thousand tons 99 million 2069 thousand tons 138 million polymers 105 thousand tons 76 million 842 thousand tons 555 million aromatics 335 thousand tons 172 million 167 thousand tons 73 million fuel & hydrocarbons 2459 thousand tons 646 million 683 thousand tons 140 million total 4544 thousand tons 1225 million 4565 thousand tons 1123 million main products edit iran has a diversified petroleum product basket with more than 70 products . 17 the main exports are polyethylene methanol benzene ammonia sulphur pvc and propylene . 18 iran exported 8.613 billion worth of different types of petrochemical products in iranian year 2010 2011 . 21 methanol iran is a key player in supplying the world s methanol demand . currently iran has the capacity to produce more than 5 million tonnes of methanol which constitutes 10 % of the world s methanol production . of this amount approximately 90 % is exported . 17 ethane in addition iran has a competitive advantage in the gas consuming stream of the petrochemical industry due to its vast reserves of natural gas . in the assalouyeh region near the south pars gas field in the persian gulf iran is able to convert raw gas to ethane a raw material for the petrochemical industry and then to petrochemical products at a gross margin of up to 88 % . in 2009 iran consumed domestically over 95 % of the natural gas that was produced . 17 expansion of the petrochemical industry edit see also assaluyeh and south pars shazand petrochemical complex . in 1989 the planning and development department of npc initiated with the help of other related institutions and individuals a long term study on the strategic plan for the development of the petrochemical industry in iran . considering national and international factors such as the local market export potentials feedstock availability and profitability a 25 year development plan consisting of five development phases was drawn up . 22 business monitor international bmi estimates that in 2009 iranian petrochemicals exports will be around 7.9 billion 32 percent above the previous year . iran hopes to implement 47 new petrochemical projects by the end of the fifth five year economic development plan in 2015 at a cost of 25 billion adding a total of 43 million tons per annum tpa to the capacity . 23 24 iran will represent at least 5.3 percent of global petrochemical output and 36 percent of middle eastern production once those projects become online . the oil ministry has set targets for annual production of 11.5 million tpa of ethylene 11.5 million tpa of polymer and 3.4 million tpa of urea with a target of becoming the world s leading producer of methanol with 7.5 million tpa of methanol capacity which represents 18 percent of global capacity . 25 iran national petrochemical company s output capacity will increase to over 100 million tpa by 2015 from an estimated 50 million tpa in 2010 thus becoming the world second largest chemical producer globally after dow chemical with iran housing some of the world s largest chemical complexes . 26 27 28 50 billion dollars will be invested during the fifth five year development plan 2011 2016 to create this new capacity . 19 projects due to be completed by 2016 such as the 14th olefins complex in firouzabad with 1mn tpa ethylene capacity the 15th olefins complex in genaveh with 500 000tpa of ethylene and the 17th olefins complex in ilam with 607 000tpa of ethylene were significantly delayed under the sanctions regime . meanwhile the 12th olefins complex has been postponed and will be configured . however the 16th olefins and methanol complex is already being constructed by bushehr petrochemical company as part of phase two of the pars sez at assaluyeh . completion of the plants with capacity for 1mn tpa ethylene and 1.65 mn tpa methanol is due in 2014 although past experience has shown that delays could push commercial production back . 29 research and development edit see also science and technology in iran and petrochemicals the abadan petrochemical complex . there are essentially four locations where r & d in the area of petrochemicals are conducted 30 universities ; research institute of the petroleum industry ripi ; the petrochemical research and technology company ; r & d departments internal to the petrochemical complexes . npc is investing more on its r & d activities this includes carrying out joint research projects with local institutions and universities ; systematic link with local and foreign research centers ; and design and operation of pilot plants for research purposes . 22 as at 2011 iran is highly dependent on foreign expertise in the petrochemical sector germany holds a 35 per cent share in iran s petrochemical production i.e. licenses . uk france and the netherlands rank the next with 18 per cent share 12 per cent share and 11 per cent share respectively . 31 iran has since embarked on domesticating some of those technologies such as naphtha isomerization thus eliminating the need for purchasing the license from western countries within the next 5 years . 32 as at 2012 self sufficiency in manufacturing and repairing rotating equipment and providing catalysts are the main challenges of the