Iran’s National Petrochemical Company (NPC) announced on 17 December the first flow of petrochemical feedstock through the West Ethylene Pipeline. The pipeline system is being built in two phases to carry feedstock from petrochemical complexes in Assaluyeh and Gachsaran to polyethylene plants being built in underdeveloped areas of Western Iran. The first phase of the network comprises 1,200km of pipeline, with diameters ranging from 8-inch to 24-inch. When complete, the system will have 2,250km of pipeline and have capacity to deliver 2.5mn tons/year of ethylene.
At a ceremony to mark the start-up, project engineering manager Mohammad-Reza Rahimi told reporters: “Injection of ethylene produced at the Kavian petrochemical plant [at Assaluyeh] into the completed part of the pipeline started a while ago, and the process of transferring has thus far been satisfactory. The transferred ethylene has been forwarded to Arvand petrochemical plant [at Bandar Iman] for further processing.” He added that volumes delivered through the pipeline would build up with the completion of pumping stations along the route. (CONTINUED - 457 WORDS)
