The managing director of National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) has said the country’s oil production capacity is going to increase by 200,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 4.03 million by the end of the current Iranian calendar year (March 20, 2023).
“With the measures taken, Iran's oil production capacity will increase to 4.03 million barrels per day by the end of this year,” Mohsen Khojasteh-Mehr told IRNA on Friday.
The official put the Islamic Republic’s current oil production capacity at 3.83 million bpd.
Pointing to the increase in the country’s oil exports over the past 12 months since the 13th government has taken office, the Deputy Oil Minister said: “Considering the increase in oil production capacity, it is possible to increase our exports if demand in global markets increases.”
Khojasteh-Mehr noted that the above-mentioned figure is the country’s optimal capacity and whenever the international conditions are more open, Iran will be ready to significantly increase exports and return to the world markets with maximum power.
Hormoz Qalavand, NIOC’s director of oil and gas production supervision, had predicted the same figures last month noting that in order to provide the requirements and conditions to achieve the mentioned goal, numerous technical, expert and management meetings have been held between NIOC and its subsidiary companies.
Khojasteh-Mehr had said early in May that NIOC plans to increase the country’s crude oil production capacity to 5.7 million barrels per day (bpd) over the next eight years.