Iran has inaugurated its biggest-ever energy project, bringin on stream four phases of the South Pars gas field, making the country outspeed Qatar in exploiting the Persian Gulf field.
President Hassan Rouhani has opened phases 13, 22, 23 and 24 of the gas field during his trip to the southern Bushehr Province.
The new launches increases the country’s gas production to 700 million cubic metres per day (Mcm/d) from the current 600 million cubic meters.
“This is the country’s biggest energy project that has seen an investment of 11 billion dollars,” Rouhani said, addressing hundreds of people in the province.
The four phases will have the capacity to produce 113 million cubic meters per day of rich gas, 100 million cubic meters per day of methane, 150 thousand barrels per day of gas condensate as well as 2 million and 100 thousand tons of Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) and two million tons of ethane that will feed the country’s petrochemical companies.
The project will also up Iran’s capacity to produce 670 million cubic meters per day of sweet gas.
At the same time, 960 million cubic meters per day of gas condensate will be produced that is a very significant rise of the current 128.779 million cubic meters per day.
Ethane production, used as olefin plants feedstock, will alo augment to eight million tons per year from the current six million tons level.
The overall production of all these four new phases of the South Pars gas field, the largest gas reserve in the world, is estimated to be valued more than five billion dollars.
All the 27 phases of the South Pars gas field will come on stream by March 2020, according to Iranian Petroleum Minister Bijan Zanganeh.
Earlier, Iran oepened the third phase of its crown refinery projects, called the Persian Gulf Star, to become self-sufficient in producing gasoline.