At the moment, Iran has a roughly 25-percent-share of the petrochemicals in the Middle East, and is planning to increase it to 38 percent by the end of the five-year National Development Plan, said Ramezan Owladi, director for planning and development at the National Iranian Petrochemical Company (NIPC).

He said petrochemical products accounted for 37.5 percent of the country’s non-oil exports and 47 percent of industrial exports in the year to March 2013.

He added that plans are in the offing to draw up a comprehensive roadmap for the country’s petrochemical industry.

Despite Western sanctions, Iran has managed to make progress on different fronts, including the energy sector.

Iranian Oil Minister Rostam Qasemi said recently that domestic experts and specialists had managed to foil the anti-Iran sanctions imposed on the country and had taken fast steps in the direction of self-sufficiency and indigenization.

“Iran is a large country and has great potential for development, and by taking advantage of this potential, we can achieve many of our projected goals,” the Iranian minister added.

The Islamic Republic has significantly expanded the range and volume of its petrochemical products over the past few years, and the NIPC has become the second largest producer and exporter of petrochemicals in the Middle East after Saudi Arabia.