Iranian companies carried out as many as 350 petrochemical projects worth over 70 billion dollars under the sanctions over the course of the recent years, said a senior Iranian petrochemical official.

Addressing a specialized panel meeting of the 12th Iran Petrochemical Forum (IPF2015), Marziyeh Shah-daei, director of projects at Iran’s National Petrochemical Company (NPC), said Iranian companies have grown very strong during the sanctions years and pointed out that Iran can ensure safety of foreign investments in the post-sanction era, Shana reported.

‘1,100 Iranian companies are being run by more than 100,000 expert personnel across Iran and can manufacture hundreds of sophisticated petrochemical equipment and stuff,’ she said.

The official said Iranian companies can now produce 170-megawatt gas turbines, 20-megawatt steam turbines, piston compressors, process pumps and steam pots.

She said Iranian petrochemical plants process 44.5 million tons of petrochemicals annually which is less than their nameplate capacity due to feedstock shortages.

She said Iran has defined 67 major petrochemical projects which are expected to double the country’s production capacity to 120 mt/y by 2025.

‘The projects are estimated to cost $40bn before their completion,’ she added.

Later on, Shah-Daei, who is also a member of NPC’s board of directors, said 36 new projects have been defined in the country’s petrochemical hubs which will add another 60mt/y to the country’s annual output for which 32 billion dollars are needed to be invested.

Iran has 67 half-finished petrochemical projects up for grabs with 20 to 90% physical progress which are planned to come on-stream based on a schedule.

Some 97 foreign companies from 25 countries participated in IPF 2015 which closed on Monday. The forum shows an increase of 120 percent compared to IPF 2014.

More than 15,00 representatives from domestic and foreign firms including Australia, Azerbaijan, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, Russia, and US partook in the event.

Participants in the IPF2015, one of the world’s most prestigious events representing the petrochemical industry, discussed the core issues that the industry is facing with the emphasis given to Iran.