"As of now, Daewoo is not buying OX. But when the company begins buying in mid-October and November, it will not deal with the Iranians," the source said.
This follows the sanctions announced by South Korea against Iranian entities on September 8, the source added. South Korea, a US ally, blacklisted 102 companies including the Iran Petrochemical Commercial Company and the Seoul branch of Iran's Bank Mellat.
Two IPCC subsidiaries, including the Buali Sina Petrochemical Company and the Borzouyeh Petrochemical Company produce OX. The total Iranian OX capacity is estimated at 200,000 mt/year.
Besides hassles in moving cargoes, traders in South Korea and Iran are not being able to finance their deals as South Korea has tightened the noose on Bank Mellat's Seoul branch which until recently acted as the sole intermediary in transactions between the two countries. "Any transactions by Bank Mellat as small as $1 will require government authorization. It's our belief that normal transactions by Bank Mellat will be difficult," a South Korean government official recently told journalists in Seoul.
South Korea, whose trade with Iran over the first seven months of this year was estimated at $7.43 billion, has imposed the sanctions in the wake of persistent demands by the US government to prevent Iranian companies from trading on its soil.
The US and its allies suspect that Iran is engaged in a covert nuclear program to develop atomic weapons, a charge Tehran denies saying its program is peaceful and designed to produce electricity.
China Chemical Weekly: http://news.chemnet.com/en/detail-1411716.html
