Chinese Government pledges loan for Hengam Petrochemical Plant Construction Project (Linked to project ID#41429)

In 2014, the Chinese Government reportedly considered issuing a loan for the Hengam Petrochemical Plant Construction Project. The face value and borrowing terms of the loan are unknown. The loan that would have supported this project would have most likely been drawn from the line of credit captured in Project ID#41429. However, it does not appear that a loan agreement with the Chinese Government was ever finalized. The purpose of this project was to construct a petrochemical plant — with the capacity to produce nearly 2,200 tons of ammonia per day and 3,500 tons of urea and granule per day — on a site in the Pars Special Economic Energy Zone (PSEEZ) within the port city of Assaluyeh in Bushehr Province. As of March 2017, the project had achieved a 52% completion rate. As of January 2019, the project was 70% complete.

Additional details

This project is also known as the Hangam Petrochemical Project. The Persian project title is پتروشیمی هنگام عسلویه or مجری: شرکت پتروشيمي هنگام. The financier of this project is unknown. However, around the time that this project was financed, China reportedly owed Iran over $20 billion in oil payments. This funding was frozen in overseas banks after US-led sanctions made it difficult for Beijing to transfer money to Tehran. Iran and China reportedly reached a deal to settle some parts of the frozen money through China’s funding of Iranian petrochemical projects. Also, in 2017, a Vice President of China Eximbank reported (see "China’s EXIM Inks $1.5 bn High-Speed Rail Deal with Iran") that it had financed 26 electricity, petrochemical, oil and gas and nonferrous metal projects in Iran worth $9 billion. Therefore, China Eximbank is the most likely funder of this project.

Number of official sources

2

Number of total sources

11