China to invest $1bln in petrochemical projects in Iran

The National Iranian Petrochemical Company (NIPC) and a Chinese consortium are about to finalize a deal whereby China will invest some $1 billion in petrochemical projects in Iran, the Mehr news agency reported on Saturday.
Negotiations are also underway with several other countries for the development of Iran's petrochemical industry, the agency said.
Sixty-one petrochemical projects are to be carried out in Iran during the Fifth National Development Plan, raising the country's petrochemical output to 100 million tons a year.
The construction program requires a total of $43 billion in investment. Contracts have already been signed for 28 of these projects.
Iran is also a major supplier of crude oil to China.