(tehrantimes) -- Iran has launched the world’s longest ethylene pipeline, which carries the chemical compound from the southern Persian Gulf port of Assaluyeh to petrochemical complexes in the western provinces of Iran.
Ethylene was injected into the West Ethylene Pipeline in Assaluyeh Port in Bushehr Province on Monday, IRNA reported.
Kavian Petrochemical Complex, situated in Assaluyeh, is the main producer of ethylene for the pipeline with an annual petrochemical production capacity of 2.18 million tons.
That the first phase of the pipeline, which carries ethylene from the Pars Special Economic Energy Zone, is 1,200 kilometers long.
Iran has significantly expanded the range and volume of its petrochemical products over the past few years, and the National Iranian Petrochemical Company has become the second largest producer and exporter of petrochemicals in the Middle East after Saudi Arabia.
The Islamic Republic exported a total of 18.2 million tons of petrochemical and polymer products, worth about USD 14.2 billion, to more than 60 countries in the previous Iranian calendar year (ended March 19, 2012).
"The joint production capacity of Kavian is 2 million tons annually and the tentative production has started early December", said Reza Amiri in a meeting with the media reporters. He also announced the launching of the world's largest ethylene producer unit in Pars Special Economic-Energy Zone.
Kavian Petrochemical Complex Directing Manager said that the operation of this large unit of ethylene production has made the West Ethylene Pipeline the world's largest petrochemical pipeline. He maintained that so far, some of the ethylene produced at Kavian has been pumped to Arvand Petro-chemicals as raw material via the West Pipeline.