D-8 Countries Chemical, Petrochemical and Plastics Association Established

Turkey's Major Plastics Industry to Meet with Iran's Raw Material Resources

The D-8 countries' plastics industry has pooled its resources, having set out to develop economic and commercial cooperation and today reaching a market worth 3.7 trillion dollars.

At the D-8 Ministerial Council Meeting held under Egypt's hosting, the Chemistry, Petrochemistry and Plastics Association was established to further boost plastic product manufacturing totalling close to 100 billion dollars.

The association, led by Iran in terms of petrochemistry reserves and Turkey in terms of plastics production capacity, will accelerate plastic investments between member countries and develop their cooperation. Turkey's plastics sector, currently ranking sixth globally and second in Europe in production capacity, will be represented by PAGEV.

The D-8, formed with Turkey's leadership and participation from Bangladesh, Indonesia, Iran, Malaysia, Egypt, Nigeria and Pakistan, continues to take steps to develop the 3.7 trillion dollar market it has reached today.

The eight member countries have added another initiative to their ongoing work aimed at improving the position of developing countries within the world economy, diversifying commercial relations and creating new opportunities for member states in trade, ensuring strong participation in international decision-making mechanisms, and raising the living standards of their peoples.

The recent Ministerial Council meeting held under Egypt's hosting was attended by a Turkish delegation of 55 people, led by Deputy Minister Hasan Ali Çelik of the Ministry of Science, Industry and Trade of the Republic of Turkey and Director General of Industry Prof. Dr. İbrahim Kılıçaslan, including the Turkish Plastics Manufacturers' Research, Development and Education Foundation (PAGEV).

At the meeting attended by Secretary General Seyyid Ali Muhammed Musavi and Egyptian Prime Minister Sherif Ismail, which also covered the plastics sector, the Chemistry, Petrochemistry and Plastics Association covering D-8 countries was established.

The association, in which PAGEV takes an active management role representing the Turkish plastics sector, will open the plastics market—one of the region's largest industries—to manufacturers through cooperation between member countries.

Turkey Leads D-8 Countries in Plastics Production

The Chemistry, Petrochemistry and Plastics Association, established by the eight member countries with Iran leading in petrochemistry reserves and Turkey in plastics production capacity, aims to push plastic product manufacturing, which approaches 100 billion dollars, even higher.

In 2015, Turkey accounted for 31% of total plastic product manufacturing, while Indonesia produced 17%, Malaysia 14%, Egypt 13% and Iran 11%. Nigeria and Pakistan each held 5% of total production, while Bangladesh held 4%.

Turkey Captured 39% of Plastic Product Exports Among Member States

The eight member countries' total plastic product exports in 2015 reached 3.6 million tonnes by volume and 11.1 billion dollars by value. Turkey held the lion's share at 39% by value in exports.

Turkey was followed by Malaysia at 30%, Indonesia and Iran at 11% each, and Egypt at 7%. Pakistan, Nigeria and Bangladesh each held less than 1% of total exports.

In 2015, the D-8 countries collectively achieved a trade surplus of 288 million dollars in plastic product foreign trade, while Turkey, Malaysia and Iran proved themselves to be net exporters in plastic product foreign trade by value.

This figure also demonstrates that the plastics sector generates a trade surplus when the D-8 is considered as a single common market.

Total plastic product and raw material exports from the eight countries captured 3.4% share of global rankings

The D-8 countries' total plastic product and raw material exports in 2015 reached 19 billion dollars. While 38% of total exports came from Malaysia, 29% came from Turkey, 16% from Iran, 11% from Indonesia and 5% from Egypt.

Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nigeria's share of total exports remained below 2%. The plastic product and raw material exports by D-8 countries accounted for 3.4% of total global plastics exports. The country where the eight member states conducted the most exports was China.

Turkey Receives Most Raw Materials from Iran…

The Turkish plastics sector, ranking sixth globally and second in Europe with 8.6 million tonnes of production in 2015, holds the most important role in the D-8's plastic product manufacturing. However, polymer raw material production can only meet 15% of Turkish plastics sector's needs.

Similarly, among D-8 countries, Turkey leads in polymer raw material foreign trade deficit. The Turkish plastics sector, which is 85% dependent on imports for raw materials, sources a large portion of its total imports from D-8 countries through Iran, which stands out for its petrochemistry reserves.

"Turkish Plastics Sector Will Move One Step Closer to European Leadership"

Evaluating the D-8 Summit, PAGEV Board Chairman Yavuz Eroğlu stated: "The eight countries are conducting successful work to strengthen cooperation and investments among themselves. At this meeting, we also took a very important step for our sector and established a Chemistry, Petrochemistry and Plastics Association covering D-8 countries.

As PAGEV, representing the Turkish plastics sector, we will actively participate in the management of this association. If we can energize the D-8 plastics market, we can generate significant employment and economic income for all D-8 countries," he said.

Emphasizing that the established association will accelerate plastic investments between member countries and develop cooperation specifically in the plastics sector, Eroğlu noted: "There is plastic product manufacturing approaching 100 billion dollars among D-8 countries.

With its 8.6 million tonnes production capacity in 2015, the Turkish plastics sector ranks sixth globally and second in Europe. Among these countries, our sector leads the way. However, we face 85% import dependency regarding raw materials.

Thanks to the association we established here today, we now have the opportunity to meet on a legal platform with Iran, which leads in the petrochemistry sector and holds a significant share in our raw material imports.

We hope to bring together Iran's major raw material resources with our country's major plastics industry in the near future. Thus, new cooperation and investments realized in both countries will be mutually beneficial," he concluded.