$200 million allocated for petrochemical downstream industries by the National Development Fund

According to Energy Press, Seyyed Mostafa Seyyed Hashemi, in a meeting with the managers of the National Petrochemical Industries Company and the chairman and members of the Production Club, stated that every production requires capital, land, technology, human resources and education, and said: We must facilitate the country’s balanced development path, especially in the petrochemical industry, through cooperation and interaction, and good decisions have been made in this regard.
Targeting 130 million tons for petrochemicals in the Seventh Development Plan
The deputy chairman of the National Development Fund’s Executive Board, referring to future plans in the petrochemical sector, stated: Based on what is predicted in the Seventh Development Plan, annual petrochemical production should increase from 96 million tons to more than 130 million tons; that is, about 40 percent growth compared to the current situation. This leap requires two main components: first, providing feedstock, and second, providing financing, in which the Fund is ready to cooperate.
He emphasized: “In the current situation, the possibility of financing through foreign investment is very limited. Therefore, we cannot wait and must pool domestic capital and complete large projects through the formation of a consortium.
Seyed Hashemi emphasized: “Small capitals, when pooled, can form large projects.”
Referring to the limitation of bank resources, he added: “Some banks are unable to finance large projects worth several hundred million dollars, given their capital base. Therefore, it is necessary to use the consortium model to divide the risk and resources between several investors and banks. Banks also have their own income and limitations.”
National Development Fund, the only path for large investments
Seyed Hashemi emphasized: Currently, the only institution that can help the country in providing resources for large projects is the National Development Fund. The fund, which was transformed from a foreign exchange reserve fund to a national development fund based on the Supreme Leader’s order, is required to receive 20 percent of the revenues from the sale of oil and oil products annually and use them for development.
He noted: “Since its establishment until today, the National Development Fund has received about $178 billion, of which about $100 billion has been allocated to the government to implement projects, $17 to $18 billion to the National Oil Company, and the rest to the private sector, including power plants, water supply projects, and petrochemical industries.”
The necessity of attracting the fund’s resources to the private sector
He said: “In the last two to three months, the honorable government has withdrawn about $4.5 billion from the fund to provide strategic reserves and solve financial issues. If these resources are not attracted to the private sector, they will remain solely in the hands of the government. We must try to ensure that domestic investors use these resources to implement production projects so that these resources lead to added value, employment, and economic prosperity.”
The deputy chairman of the National Development Fund’s board of directors added: “If the Development Fund is to help increase the country’s production, decisions must be made that result in tangible growth.” He noted: “We must be able to profit from investments, but this profit is valuable when it can also activate the production cycle; not when money is given but there is no return. Just as the government has earmarked $100 billion to return.