Iran’s National Petrochemical Company (NPC) has signed preliminary agreements with Anglo-Dutch firm Shell and Japan’s Sojitz for petrochemicals projects studies. This brings to six the number of deals the state firm has secured since the lifting of international sanctions in January (see table).

NPC and Shell signed a letter of intent (LoI) to study a variety of potential petchem prospects. Shell’s Iran vice-president Hans Nijkamp says the projects that Shell would consider developing in Iran include an ethane cracker and a gas-to-liquids (GTL) plant. (CONTINUED - 614 WORDS)