TEHRAN August 31(Shana)�The ethane supplied from Phases 15&16 of the supergiant South Pars gas field is being fed to Kavian, Morvarid and Jam plants, a petrochemical official said.

Production Control Manager at National Petrochemical Company (NPC) Ali Mohammad Bosaqzadeh has said the supplies started a couple of weeks ago and the plants are receiving 10 to 15 tons/hour of ethane from the phases.

He said the refinery of the phases is operating at 10% of its capacity while it is designed to process 125t/h of the commodity when fully operational.

The maximum ethane output of phases 15-18 of the gas field is estimated to rise more than 1.4mt from the year-earlier amount, said the official.

Last year, South Pars refineries delivered 2.8mt of ethane to petrochemical plants across the country.

First-priority phases of the South Pars (12 and 15-21) are expected to produce 100mcm/d of natural gas by the calendar year-end (March 20 2016).

Petrochemical analysts say Iran's petrochemical output during the current calendar year will hit 50mt, 6mt more than a year ago.

By SHANA