BAKU, Azerbaijan, February 3. The National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) plans to invest about 35 trillion rials (around $833 million) to boost the export capacity and the hydrocarbon reserves of the Kharg oil terminal on the Kharg Island in the south of Iran, said Mohsen Khojasteh Mehr, deputy oil minister and CEO of the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), Trend reports.
Khojasteh Mehr stated that the Kharg oil terminal is undergoing operational upgrades. The plan is to construct new storage tanks with a total volume of 28 million barrels and renovate the existing ones.
He also praised the Kharg oil terminal as one of the most advanced oil terminals in the world, with a high potential for exporting crude oil and gas condensate.
Moreover, the deputy minister said that a project on security and fire prevention is in progress at the Kharg oil terminal, which will cost about 11 trillion rials (roughly $262 million).
On Kharg Island, the Iranian Oil Terminals Company operates 40 storage tanks that can store over 20 million barrels of crude oil. The oil comes from the southern oil fields of Iran via submarine pipelines. The oil is then sorted into different grades and exported from the Kharg Oil Terminal.
There are currently 74 oil and 22 gas fields in Iran. So, 37 oil fields are operating in the territory of the National Iranian South Oil Company (NISOC), 14 fields – Iranian Central Oil Fields Company (ICOFC), 5 fields – Arvandan Oil and Gas Company (AOGC), and 18 oil fields – Iranian Offshore Oil Company (IOOC).
In addition, 5 gas fields are operating in the territory of the NISOC, 13 fields – the ICOFC, 1 field – Pars Oil and Gas Company (POGC), and 3 gas fields – the IOOC.
Iran’s total hydrocarbon reserves are estimated at 1.2 trillion barrels. With available technology and equipment, Iran can extract 340 billion barrels. Thus, 30 percent of the country's hydrocarbon reserves are recoverable, while 70 percent remain underground.
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