Iran's Oil Reserves Exceed 175 Billion Barrels

The Deputy of Planning and Supervision on Hydrocarbon Resources of the Iranian Ministry of Oil reported that the country's oil reserves exceed 175 billion barrels. This report compares the statistics not with last year's figures or those from Ahmadinejad's government, but rather with statistics from before the revolution. According to Shana news agency, the Iranian Ministry of Oil stated in its report on Wednesday, February 3, that the recoverable oil reserves discovered before the victory of the revolution were about 87 billion barrels, adding that 'after the victory of the revolution, 88.4 billion barrels were added to the volume of these discovered reserves, bringing the total to 175.4 billion barrels by the end of the year 1393 (2014)'. The report also states: 'By the beginning of the year 1393, the recoverable oil reserves of the country amounted to 172.31 billion barrels.' Based on the latest report from British Petroleum published this summer, the volume of recoverable oil reserves in Iran was estimated at nearly 158 billion barrels in 2014, which has not changed significantly compared to previous reports. The report adds that before the victory of the revolution in February 1979, the remaining recoverable gas was 14 trillion cubic meters, which has increased to 33.5 trillion cubic meters due to increased exploration. The BP report estimated Iran's gas reserves at 34 trillion cubic meters in 2014. The report states that since the beginning of oil production until the victory of the revolution (about 70 years), a total of 28 billion barrels of oil were produced, while from the victory of the revolution until the end of year 1393, more than 44 billion barrels of oil were produced in the country. The report further states: 'The export of 159 billion cubic meters of gas, more than 557 million cubic meters of capacity for natural gas processing per day, and gas supply to about 22.5 million households are among the achievements of Iran's gas industry from the beginning until the end of year 1393.' The report does not specify how much of the exported gas occurred after the revolution, but according to a report published by the Statistical Center of Iran, Iran exported less than 70 billion cubic meters of gas from 1979 to 2013. Since 2013, Iran has also exported less than 10 billion cubic meters of gas annually, totaling about 90 billion cubic meters. On the other hand, according to the National Iranian Oil Products Distribution Company, Iran consumed an average of 472 million cubic meters of processed gas daily last year, experiencing a 12 percent growth compared to 2014. In this context, oil and gas will continue to dominate the energy market until '2040'.