National Petrochemical Company of Iran

　　　　　　　　　　　http://www.npc-international.com/

As part of the Petroleum Ministry, NPC is wholly owned by the Iranian government. Its organisation presently constitutes a central mother company and several subsidiaries and affiliates.

The initial step towards the development of the Iranian petrochemical industry traces back to 1963 when a fertiliser plant was installed in Shiraz (south Iran). In 1964 the National Petrochemical Company of Iran was founded to undertake the operation and development of the petrochemical industry. Since then through joint investments with internationally recognised companies, NPC has established several petrochemical plants producing various chemicals and petrochemicals for both domestic and foreign markets.

NPC's major activities are directed to production, sales, distribution and export of chemicals and petrochemicals. In order to reduce imports and boost exports, NPC has conducted various projects within it's first Five-Year Development Plan (1989ー 1994). In keeping with the country's policy of breaking away from a single product economy based on crude oil and achieving a much bigger share in the global market, the petrochemical industry has received yet more attention in Iran's Second Five-Year Development Plan (1995 ー 2000). Detailed studies have already been made to formulate future plans for NPC and a strategic Development programme has been drawn up for the next 25 years (1995 ー 2020), divided in five phases. Its first phase is the Second Five-Year Development Plan.

National Petrochemical Company of Iran 　　　他に計画中のエチレンセンター　第６、第７、第９計画
　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　　(1,000 tons/year)

Tabriz Petrochemicals Complex
Production capacity is as follows (tons/year): polyethylene (100,000), polystyrene (65,000), rubber (14,000), latex (12,000), propylene (50,000). Total capacity: 250,000 tons a year. Locaion: next to Tabriz refinery. Feedstock: light naphta.

Abadan Petro-chemical Complex
Abadan Petro-Chemical Complex was established to produce PVC, primary materials of plastics, D.D.B., primary material of detergents, and potash. It began operation in 1971. In 1980 NIPC bought the 26 percent shares of a foreign share-holder, and thereby became to the single owner of this complex. The activities of the complex came to a halt during the Iran-Iraq war, but it was reconstructed and resumed production in October 1989.

(European Chemical News. 25 March-1 April 2002)

Site expansion to boost capacity of olefins plant

Iranian company Bandar Imam Petrochemical, a subsidiary of state-owned National Petrochemical (NPC), plans to expand capacity of its olefins plant in Bandar Imam. In its latest news bulletin, NPC says capacity will rise from 311 000 tonne/year to 411 000 tonne/year.

A contract for the basic engineering has been awarded to ABB Lummus Global and contracts for the detailed engineering and construction are expected to be awarded soon. Basic engineering work has started and the project is due to be completed in the second half of 2004.

The expansion will be realised by process and equipment modifications. Major changes include improving plant heaters and replacing the methane, charge gas, propylene and ethylene compressors. These improvements will lower energy consumption at the plant by 20%.

The additional ethane feedstock needed will be supplied by Bandar Imam Petrochemical's natural gas liquids fractionation unit.

Meanwhile, bid offers for a 300 000 tonne/year polyvinyl chloride facility at the Bandar Imam complex are under evaluation. NPC subsidiary, Petrochemical Industries Development Management, is drawing up negotiation programmes with bidders and talks are set to begin shortly.

The Second Five-year Plan Projects

The Second Five-year Plan Projects is part of NPC's strategic development plan which are to be implemented during 1997 - 2001. It is comprised of 10 projects and will boost NPC's petrochemical production by 6.7 million Tons / Year. By implementing these projects at the end of the Second Five-year Plan Projects, the total production capacity (intermediate and final) will reach 20 million Ton / Year.

The Third Five-year Plan Projects

Feasibility studies for the Third Five-year Plan Projects are underway. These projects are to be implemented during 2001 to 2005. New Olephon, Aromatic and Methanol complexes with down stream products will further increase NPC’s production capacity by 6.7 million Ton (final products).

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2003/2/5 Financial Times

NPC signs $108m deal with HSBC

HSBC has signed an agreement with National Petrochemical Company of Iran (NPC) for a $108 million export credit guaranteed by the UK's Export Credits Guarantee Department (ECGD).

The funds will be used to finance the export of equipment and services for the construction of a 600,000 tonne per annum styrene monomer plant at Bandar Assaluyeh in Iran. This plant is part of the ninth olefins project being constructed at a cost of $1.2 billion.

"The completion of this sizeable transaction represents an important step in HSBC's progressive engagement with Iran in general, and NPC in particular. HSBC is in a strong position to assist companies around the world in Iran, and hopes to announce the completion of further transactions during 2003," said Dr. Nasser Homapour, senior representative for HSBC in Iran.

This marks HSBC's third export credit transaction with NPC in the last year.

In February 2002 it signed a $34 million export credit to Bank Tejarat guaranteed by ECGD, to finance a carbon monoxide plant being constructed by Snamprogetti at Bandar Imam Khomeini.

In March that year, HSBC acted as lead arranger in co-financing a $155 million export credit facility between Japan Bank for International Co-operation and Bank Mellat to finance an ammonia and urea plant being constructed by Toyo Engineering Corp. and Chiyoda Corp for NPC.

CNI News -1999/1/8 By Anna Williams　　

London (CNI) - Iran's National Petrochemical Co (NPC) is to award French engineering firm Technip a contract for the detailed engineering and supply of a 208 000 tonne/year linear low density polyethylene (lldPE) plant at the new olefins complex at Bandar Imam, CNI was told Friday.

The final negotiations for signing are currently taking place, said Esfandiar Karimzadegan, managing director of NPC International. The olefins complex will be constructed in the special economic zone next to the Bandar Imam chemical complex on the Persian Gulf, and is due onstream in 2001.

NPC has also awarded contracts for a polyethylene terephthalate (PET)/purified terephthalic acid (PTA) complex to be built at Bandar Imam's special economic zone, Karimzadegan said. Japan's Daelim and Sazeh of Iran will carry out detailed engineering work for the PTA plant, with Tecnimont providing the PTA technology. Germany's Zimmer will carry out detailed engineering and supply for the PET plant. The complex will produce 350 000 tonne/year of PTA, 352 000 tonne/year of pure grade of PET and 60 000 tonne/year bottle grade, and is due onstream in 2001.

Contracts for a second PET/PTA complex are currently under negotiation. This complex will produce 350 000 tonne/year of PTA, 235 000 tonne/year of pure grade PET and 180 000 tonne/year of bottle grade PET.

Karimzadegan also confirmed that Salzgitter of Germany has been given the basic engineering contract for an engineering polymers plant at the Bandar Imam special economic zone. This will produce 25 000 tonne/year of polycarbonate, 4000 tonne/year of solid epoxy resins and 6000 tonne/year of liquid epoxy resins, and is due onstream in 2001.

The projects are part of NPC's first two phases of its five phase $24bn plan to build around 30 petrochemical plants. Phases one and two, which NPC has now combined, comprise ten projects and will boost NPC's petrochemicals production by almost 6.7bn tonne/year.

1999/11/23 NEWS RELEASE 　 　→ＮＰＣ・ＤＳＭ（SABICが買収）ＪＶに

NPC and Elenac are planning world-scale LDPE project at Bandar Imam (Iran)

The Iranian National Petrochemical Company (NPC), Tehran, and Elenac GmbH, Kehl, Germany have signed a Letter of Intent regarding a possible collaboration in a new world-scale polyethylene plant at Bandar Imam, Iran.
The project foresees the construction and joint operation of a 300 kt/a low-density Polyethylene (LDPE) plant at the Olefins 6&7 petrochemical complex part of NPC’s second Five Year Plan. It will be located in the Special Petrochemical Economic Zone at Bandar Imam on the northern coast of the Persian Gulf.

Elenac will provide its high pressure tubular reactor technology (Lupotech T) for the new plant.

Plant construction, operation and marketing of the product will be carried out by a new Venture, with a shareholding of Elenac 55% and NPC 45%.

Ethylene feedstock will be provided by NPC’s new cracker also planned for Olefins 6&7.　Besides its technology Elenac will contribute its considerable expertise in manufacturing, product know-how and marketing, and will be responsible for export sales.

Start-up of the LDPE plant is scheduled for 2003.

NPC is a state-owned organisation responsible for the operation and development of the country’s petrochemical industry. It was founded in 1964. In the past 35 years it has become the Middle East’s second largest producer and exporter of petrochemicals. NPC is a holding company with 9 subsidiary Production companies, 22 subsidiaries involved in Sales, Engineering and provision of other Services and 12 Project Implementation Companies. In 1998, NPC produced 6.5 mln tons of final products and it exported 3.6 mln tons of chemicals valued at USD 457 mln. A Strategic Plan for developing the petrochemical industry in Iran over a 20-year period has been set up.
NPC’s overall policy is to achieve global presence; it has therefore opened several offices in Europe, Asia and the Middle East. Manpower number is about 17,000.
NPC is currently producing 100 kt/a LDPE at Bandar Imam based on an autoclave technology.

Elenac （その後 Basell）is a 50/50 joint venture of BASF and Shell for the production and sale of polyethylene and the development and commercialisation of related technologies. Elenac is the second largest PE supplier in Europe.

Elenac companies employ about 3,100 people world-wide and the expected turnover for 1999 is around 2 billion USD.
The Olefins 6&7 and Olefins 8 projects are part of Elenac’s long term development strategy to extend its business outside Europe and to gain access to competitively priced feedstock for Polyethylene production and to supply markets with interesting growth potential for PE.

NPC, Elenac and Shell Chemicals Ltd, London, also informed that they have agreed to undertake a joint study of the concept of an additional olefins complex, named Olefins 8. This complex is also planned at Bandar Imam and would comprise an ethane cracker and polyethylene and other derivatives plants. The proposed study will be completed by mid of 2000 and will help to define the exact scope of the complex.

BANDAR IMAM 1 ETHYLENE AND PROPYLENE CHEMICAL PLANT

http://www.chemicals-technology.com/projects/bandar1/index.html

Iran is looking to expand its petrochemical capacity on an enormous scale. Under the multi-phase development programme, The National Petrochemical Company (NPC) plans that Iran's capacity to make petrochemical intermediates and final products will grow from 9 million tonnes/year (mt/yr) in 2001, to 20mt/yr in 2005, to 27mt/yr in 2013.

Approximately 50% of the total petrochemical costs are in hard currency which is invested through Engineering Procurement (EP) Contracts with foreign and Iranian contractors. This can be made available depending on the type of project and project contract. Around 85% of EP contracts price's cover financing arrangements with international financial resources and the remianing 15% from NPC's own resources.

ETHYLENE OXIDE AND ETHYLENE GLYCOL
The Olefins 8 will be based around a new 1.25mt/yr plant erected at the Bandar Imam complex by Linde AG, which is currently under review. JV Investment is currently in discussion with Shell to discuss the finances for the Olefin 8. The cost of the Olefins 8 project is expected to be in the region of $500 million. Linde also won a contract for a 525,000t/yr plant in 1999. It will also include the 268,000t/yr facilities for ethylene oxide and ethylene glycol. These have been held over from the Olefins 6 & 7 projects. The plant will be completed in 2003.

LOW-DENSITY POLYETHYLENE
The production figures see the total polyethylene capacity of the Olefin 6 as 440,000t/y, which includes 140,000t/y HDPE and 300,000t/y LLDPE. The Olefin 7 site's total polyethylene capacity is 600,000t/y, including 300,000t/y HDPE and 300,000kt/y LDPE. The plant is a joint venture between Elenac GmbH (55%) and the NPC (45%). The plant will use Elenac's Lupotech T technology. The letter of intent for the LDPE plant was signed in the last quarter of 1999. It is expected to be commissioned in 2004. The deal will allow the German company, hitherto restricted to Europe, to access the cheaper raw materials of the Middle East. Elenac is a consortium of BASF AG and Shell.

Another contract for a 140,000t/yr HDPE facility as part of the Olefin 6 complex in Bandar Imam was awarded to Krupp Uhde by Petrochemical Industries Development Management. The facility was 75% complete in November 2001, and should be in operation before 2003. It will also use technology from Hoechst. The NPC will also construct a 160,000t/yr facility for propylene. The NPC plant will be commissioned in 2001. Engineering services are to be provided by Tecnimont. Spheripol technology from Montell will be installed.

POLYPROPYLENE
The NPC plant can expect competition from another plant close to Bandar Imam. An 80,000t/yr polypropylene facility is to be constructed near Bandar Imam by Mosavar. This was announced in January 2000, and is expected to come on line in 2002. The engineering contract for the plant has been awarded to Krupp Uhde. Targor's Novolen technology will be installed.

POLYETHYLENE TEREPHTHALATE
The polyethylene terephthalate (PET) facility at Bandar Imam will cost in the region of $400 million. The plant will have a capacity of 235,000t/yr of pure-grade PET and 180,000t/yr of bottle-grade PET. The basic and detailed engineering-and-supply contract for the PET facility has been awarded to the Italian Noyvallesina and the Iranian Namvaran. The complex also includes a purified terephthalic acid (PTA) facility with a capacity of 350,000t/yr. Both plants are currently around 85% completed and should be in operation by mid-2002.

FIVE-PHASE PROCESS

The project is divided into five phases. Phases 1 and 2 comprise 10 projects due for completion by 2002. These units have a total capacity of 5.3 million tonnes/year of final products. The first two phases might require $3.5 billion of finance.

The six units that make up Phase 3 of NPC's development programme will have capacity to produce 4.3 million tonnes per year of intermediates and 6.9t/yr of final products. The Phase-3 units are tentatively slated for start-up in 2001-05. Targeted for operation in 2004 are the Olefin 7,9 and 10 complexes, the 4th Aromatic plant and the 4th Methanol plant. The third phase could demand as much as $7.2 billion of investment. Half of this is expected to go to engineering and services.

NPC has outlined Phases 4 and 5 of its expansion programme, which encompass the periods 2005-09 and 2009-13, respectively. Phase 4 covers five projects in the region with ten different final products and should provide up to 3.6mt/yr of added capacity production. These phases together will increase NPC's final product capacity by a combined 5.4mt/yr.

IRANIAN GOVERNMENT ENCOURAGES INVESTMENT

Iran is well placed to develop a petrochemical industry, because it has ample oil and gas reserves. In the past, it has largely relied on raw material exports. However, like many Middle Eastern producers, it wants to move downstream in order to exploit more value-added, less commoditised exports. This strategy was given an extra urgency by the low oil prices through most of 1999, although the recovery in the latter part of the year and early 2000 relieved the pressure

Almost half of the country's petrochemical output is exported. The most important markets are the Far East (especially China and India) and Europe. Thus, the industry provides a welcome source of hard currency for the country. The vast capital needed to fulfil the Iranian government's ambitious plans for the local petrochemical industry can only be achieved with foreign help. International companies are required for both technology and as partners in raising equity and loans.

Iran's poor relationship with the USA raises a difficulty. The US government has passed an act imposing sanctions on companies that invest more than $20 million in the petrochemical industry in Iran. This has not yet been implemented as it is regarded as unacceptable by many of the USA's allies. It nevertheless makes it harder for companies to raise money for Iranian projects.

Therefore Iran has gone to great lengths to attract foreign investment by upgrading its infrastructure, allowing cheap access to feedstock and excise tax concessions. Furthermore, Iran sets no limits on the equity interest a foreign operator can own in a plant on Iranian soil. To encourage investment in the country's petrochemical industry, a special economic zone has been created around Bandar Imam. The tax holidays available to petrochemical investors can be as long as nine years.

Chemical Week May 29, 2002

NPC Plans PVC Plant; to Expand Soda Ash

National Petrochemical Co. (NPC; Tehran) says it will build a 300,000-m.t./year polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plant at the Mahshahr, Iran petrochemical economic zone. The plant is one of 10 petchem production units planned at Mahshahr. Further details were not disclosed. NPC, meanwhile, says it has decided to scrap a previously announced plan to build an 80,000-m.t./year soda ash plant at Shiraz, Iran and will instead expand capacity of its soda ash plant at Shiraz by 40,000 m.t./year. That plant has capacity for 80,000 m.t./year of light soda ash, 66,000 m.t./year of heavy soda ash, and 20,000 m.t./year of sodium bicarbonate.

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December 2, 2002 Dow Jones

Iran In Final Stage Of International Tender On PVC Plant

Iran is in the final stage of an international tender on the establishment of a 300,000-ton-a-year plant to produce polyvinyl chloride, or PVC, Mohammad-Reza Nematzadeh, head of the state National Petrochemical Co., said Saturday.

Nematzadeh told reporters that the project, slated for construction at Bandar Imam port in the southwestern Iranian province of Khuzestan, will also produce 300,000 tons of ethylene dichloride, or EDC, that has been earmarked for exports.

European, Japanese and South Korean companies have submitted bids and the outcome of the tender winner will be announced in about a month or two.

Nematzadeh said the NPC has not finalized technical and financial assessment on the project. However, its engineering and equipment procurement's cost is estimated at about $400 million.

In addition to the PVC project, the NPC has also put two units for ethylene and methanol production in the Persian Gulf island of Kharg on international tender.

The company is also currently preparing documents on a petrochemical plant in the western Iranian province of Ilam, near the borders with Iraq, Nematzadeh said.

Total investments in Iran's petrochemical sector since 1989, the bulk of which has come from international investors, is around $10 billion of which around $7 billion pertain to the engineering and equipment parts. 　

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Asia Chemical Weekly 2003/8/20

Iran's NPC awards PVC plant contract to Uhde/Sazeh

Iran’s National Petrochemical Company (NPC) has awarded the engineering and procurement (EP) contract for its polyvinyl chloride (PVC) complex at Bandar Imam, Southwest Iran to Germany’s Uhde and Iran’s Sazeh.

In a statement on last Friday, NPC said the contract covers provision of licence, basic and detailed engineering, supply of equipment, training and technical assistance during construction, commissioning and startup and performance tests.

Uhde/Sazeh won the contract in competition with two other consortia: Toyo Engineering, LG Engineering & Construction and Petrochemical Industries Design & Engineering; and Samsung Engineering, Simon Carves and Namvaran. The value of the contract was not disclosed.

NPC said the new PVC complex, which is due onstream in the third quarter of 2006, will produce 570 000 tonne/year of chlorine. It added that 160 000 tonne will be used as feedstock for the nearby Khuzestan, Karoon and Qadir petrochemical companies and 410 000 tonne as feedstock for ethylene dichloride/vinyl chloride monomer (EDC/VCM) plants.

The PVC complex will produce 300 000 tonne of suspension-grade PVC, 40 000 tonne of emulsion-grade E-PVC, 267 300 tonne of EDC, 634 000 tonne of caustic soda (50% solution) and 16 200 tonne of sodium hypochlorite.

The plant’s feedstock includes 1.27m tonne of solar salt, 237 000 tonne of ethylene and 50 000 tonne of oxygen. The nearby Fajr Petrochemical Co, an NPC subsidiary, will provide the plant’s utilities and oxygen.

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2003/7/31 Financial Times

NPC scraps Ilam PP

Plans to construct an 80,000 tonne/y polypropylene plant in Ilam, Iran, have been abandoned by National Petrochemical Co (NPC). The company, which is building a 318,000 tonne/y cracker at the site, has decided that the facility would be too small to be profitable. Propylene output from the cracker will instead be destined for facilities in Assaluyeh and Bandar Imam.
NPC's subsidiary, Petrochemical Industries Development Management Co (Pidmco), is appointing contractors for the cracker project, which also includes the construction of a 300,000 tonne/y HDPE facility. The project should be completed in 2006. Contractors are also being sought to build facilities on Kharg Island, with the capacity to produce 550,000 tonne/y of monoethylene glycol (MEG), 660,000 tonne/y of methanol, and 495,000 tonne/y of ammonia. Contracts will also be awarded for a 500,000 tonne/y cracker at the site.

Chemical Week 2002/6/5

NPC, DSM Finalize Polyethylene JV

　DSM’s petrochemical division, which is scheduled to be acquired this month by Sabic, has signed a previously announced joint venture agreement with National Petrochemical Co. (NPC; Tehran) to build a 300,000-m.t./year low-density polyethylene (LDPE) plant at Bandar Imam, Iran. NPC will hold 45% of the jv, Sabic will have 35%, and Poushineh Baft Iran (Tehran) will hold the rest. The partners have awarded Lurgi and Shazeh Consultants (Tehran) a contract to build the LDPE plant, which will use technology supplied by Stamicarbon, part of DSM’s petchem business. The unit will form part of Iran’s No. 7 olefins complex, which is to be built by Marun Petrochemical, an NPC subsidiary, at Bandar Imam. It will be Sabic’s first investment in Iran.

化学工業日報　2002/8/28　

イラン石油省、来週にも第９計画に着工

　イラン石油省は２６日、アッサルイエ地区で計画しているパース・ペトロケミカルのエチレン年産１００万トン計画（通称・第９オレフィン計画）および誘導品計画を来週にも着工すると発表した。第６−第１０におよぶ年産約５００万トンのエチレン計画のうち、第６、第７に続く３番目の着工で、２００４年の完成を予定している。世界第２位の埋蔵量を持つ天然ガスをベースとした同国の石化計画がまた一歩前進したことにより、アジアの石化需給にも大きなインパクトを与えることが確実視されている。

化学工業日報　2003/2/6

ＮＰＣ、サソールと大型石化計画で共同投資へ

　イランで計画されている大型石化計画が、具体化へ動き始めた。国営石油化学会社（ＮＰＣ）が中心になって進めている第９オレフィン「Ｐａｒｓ ＰＣ」について、ＮＰＣはこのほど南ア・サソール社のドイツ子会社との間で共同投資計画として推進することで基本合意、２００４−０５年にかけて完成・稼働させる方針を固めた模様だ。

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NPC 2003/1

NPC and Sasol sign 50/50 joint venture agreement
http://www.nipc.net/npcnews/news35and36/projects.htm

The National Petrochemical Company (NPC) and Sasol Polymers (Germany) signed a 50/50 joint venture agreement to construct and operate an integrated facility for the production of ethylene and polyethylene. The production facility will be situated at Pars Special Economic/Energy Zone, Bandar Assaluyeh on the Persian Gulf coast.

The ethane cracker in the facility will produce one million tonnes of ethylene per year. The two polyethylene plants will produce low density and medium/high density polyethylene respectively and will have a combined capacity of 600,000 tonnes of polyethylene per year, which is destined for the export markets.

Construction activity has commenced and the ethylene facility is expected to start up in the second half of 2004. The polyethylene plant is expected on stream in 2005.

Speaking at the agreement signing ceremony, Mr. M. R. Nematzadeh, deputy petroleum minister and NPC president said that NPC was very pleased that Sasol had made such an investment in the Iranian polymer industry. He looked forward to a long and constructive relationship.

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Financial Times

IRAN, GERMANY IN ETHYLENE AND POLYETHYLENE JV

Iran and Germany are to establish an ethylene and polyethylene production line at Pars Special Economic Energy Zone in Assalouyeh Port in Bushehr Province, south of Iran, by the second half of 2004. National Petrochemical Company (NPC) of Iran and German Sasol Polymer company were signatories to an equal-share agreement. The project is expected to yield one million tons of ethylene and 600,000 tons of polyethylene for exports a year. Iran is to triple the value of its petrochemical production in the next three years to about six billion dollars, Managing Director of Iran's Petrochemical Commercial Company Mohammad Ehtiati said on sidelines of the second international exhibition of color, resin and industrial coating that Iran will produce more than $1.8 billion worth petrochemicals this year, a six-fold rise from the output for the year which ended in March 2001, which stood at about $300 million. Iran earned $900 million this year from export of 4.5 million tons of chemical substances, gases and polymers, said the official. Ehtiati said number of foreign clients too has risen to 340 this year. (Source: Info-Prod (Middle East) Ltd.)

April 23, 2003 　Financial Times

Iran/ MDPE unit under way/ Pars Petrochemicals.

The engineering, procurement and construction lump sum turnkey contract for a 300,000 tonne/y medium density polyethylene facility in Assaluyeh, Iran, has been awarded to a consortium of Uhde, Germany, and Sazeh, Iran, by Pars Petrochemicals. The contract is worth over EUR 100 M. Pars Petrochemical is a joint venture between National Petrochemical Co, Basell and Sasol. The facility is due to be completed in early 2006. Basell will supply the technology.