Iran’s major petrochemical conglomerate envisages investing one billion euros in its new projects in the current calendar year to March 2016, the conglomerate’s chief executive says.

Adel Nejad-Salim said Persian Gulf Petrochemical Industries Co. (PGPIC), which comprises 60 petrochemical companies, plans investment in order to raise its output.

He said the company produced 18.5 million tons of petrochemicals last calendar year, adding, “Based on our strategic plans in this company, we will reach our 100% production capacity” by March 2019.

“We hope that we can 81% of production capacity (20 million tons)” in the current calendar year, SHANA news agency quoted Nejad-Salim as saying.

PGPIC, whose production capacity is 22 million tons a year, has been facing feedstock shortages in recent years.

Subsidiaries of this company are exporting $8 billion to $9 billion of petrochemicals every year.

In 2013, PGPIC was recognized as the second largest producer of petrochemicals in the Middle East.

In April, an Iranian petrochemical official said the country’s petrochemical sector is capable of attracting $70 billion in domestic and foreign investment.

Ahmad Mahdavi Abhari, secretary of the Association of Petrochemical Industry Corporations (AIPC) said the value of half-finished projects in Iran's petrochemical sector amounts to $70 billion, proving that the sector has a good potential to attract foreign investment.

Petrochemical industry uses nearly 7% of Iran’s hydrocarbons reserves.

This amount can produce up to 43 million tons of petrochemical products, which accounts for 40% of Iran’s non-oil exports. The remaining 93% of hydrocarbons is exported.

Petrochemical industry plays a pivotal role in shaping the economy in countries that benefit from oil and gas.

Now, as an oil and gas-rich country and in line with its efforts to further diversify its economy, Iran has embarked on building world-scale petrochemical plants, so that, 73 petrochemical units are under construction and will come on stream in two years.

By Press TV