Iran’s methanol exports to China increased in April amid higher domestic production and reduced shipments to India. Iran’s methanol exports to China stood at 414,000 tons in April, roughly 40% of China’s total imports of 1 million tons during that month. China is the world’s largest methanol importer, accounting for about 60% of global demand.
The start-up of Pars Kimiya and Bushehr methanol plants in Assaluyeh earlier this year helped to bring Iran’s net methanol capacity to 12.2 million tons/year, doubling from its capacity in 2018. Other new capacities include Kaveh’s 2.3 million tons/year unit and SPII’s 1.65 million tons-year plant, which started production in 2019 and 2018, respectively.
Iranian exporters stepped up shipments to China as India took fewer cargoes in April amid the country’s nationwide lockdown aimed to combat the COVID-19 pandemic. Iran has been the largest methanol supplier to India. Last year, it sold 2.3 million tons of methanol to India, increasing by almost 22% from 2018.
Methanol exports to China, however, are expected to be under pressure in the coming months due to mounting inventory pressure in China’s coastal storage tanks.
