West Ethylene pipeline to start work in Autumn

The second phase of West Ethylene Pipeline is under construction and will become operational in autumn this year. As Iran’s petrochemical sector is growing, the construction and completion of the second phase of the pipeline has picked up speed and this national project will come on-stream, Shana reported. The section of the pipeline stretching from Kermanshah to Sanandaj in western Iran is fully ready and its hydrostatic tests have been conducted. The sections connecting Sanandaj to Saqez and Saqez to Miandoab as well as the Miandoab-Mahabad sections are close to being completed. The pipeline is forecasted to come online by November to carry feedstock to petrochemical plants for higher output. The pipeline is designed to carry 150,000 tons of ethylene to Tabriz Petrochemical Plant. Lorestan, Mahabad and Kurdestan petrochemical plants are also to be fed by West Ethylene Pipeline. The construction of the pipeline was first adopted in 2002 when Bijan Namdar Zanganeh was serving as petroleum minister. The entire pipeline stretches from Assaluyeh in southern Iran to West Azarbaijan Province in northwestern Iran. Kavian Petrochemical Plant will convert ethane received from South Pars to ethylene to be injected into West Ethylene Pipeline. Eleven provinces and 14 petrochemical plants are located on the route of the pipeline. The 14 petrochemical plants are either operational or under construction with an investment of 8.5 billion dollars. The eleven provinces include Fars, Khuzestan, Lorestan, Kohguiluyeh Boyer Ahmad, Chahar Mahal va Bakhtiari, Kurdstan, Kermanshah, Ilam, Hamedan, East Azarbaijan and West Azarbaijan. The first phase of the pipeline, which is 1,200 kilometers long, was launched by former president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. The pipeline is known to be the longest ethylene transfer pipeline in the world.