Iran's Oil Ministry Reports Unprecedented Record in Oil Product Exports

Iran has announced that in the first 10 months of the current solar year, for the first time in the 100-year history of Iranian oil, exports of oil products reached an unprecedented daily figure of 450,000 barrels. Abbas Kazemi, the CEO of the National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company, stated in an interview with the IRNA news agency on Friday, April 6, that efforts are being made to increase daily oil product exports to 600,000 barrels in the coming years. Iran's exported oil products include fuel oil, diesel, naphtha, and liquefied gas. International statistics and Iranian data indicate that over the past decade, Iran's oil product production capacity has remained relatively stable, but the main reason for the surge in exports is the significant reduction in domestic consumption in the electricity and household sectors due to increased gas supply to these sectors, making Iran a diesel and liquefied gas exporter for the past two years. Kazemi noted that 'in 2013, about 48% of the fuel in Iranian refineries was liquid, but this year this figure has decreased to 10%.' Statistics from the Ministry of Energy show that in 2013, Iran consumed over 24 billion liters of diesel and fuel oil in power plants, while in the past 11 months, this figure has been just over 6 billion liters. However, Iran is currently a gasoline importer, averaging nearly 12 million liters (about 4.4 billion liters annually) of gasoline imports this year. The Fars news agency also reported today, citing Bijan Namdar Zanganeh, Iran's oil minister, that between 2008 and 2012, about $25 billion worth of oil products were purchased and imported into the country. Data from the National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company indicates that most of these shipments were gasoline and some diesel. Kazemi further stated that after the JCPOA, significant developments occurred in refinery expansions, and sanctions in this regard were lifted, leading to a substantial supply of equipment for the development of Persian Gulf refineries and Bandar Abbas from Germany, accelerating project implementation. Kazemi continued that for the stabilization and quality improvement project of the Abadan refinery, a $2.8 billion investment opportunity was created, and the contract was officially signed with China last week. Iran plans to upgrade six out of nine existing refineries with a $14 billion investment, ensuring that their final products have added value and meet international environmental standards. For example, an average of 24% of the output from Iranian refineries is fuel oil, which is even cheaper than crude oil. Iran aims to reduce this figure to 10%. The Abadan refinery itself has one of the worst conditions among refineries, and according to Kazemi, the share of fuel oil (mazut) production relative to total outputs (gasoline, diesel, etc.) is expected to decrease from the current 40% to 25%. The Iranian oil minister also stated on February 6 that the Abadan refinery is practically unprofitable due to its significant production of fuel oil, incurring annual losses of $600 to $700 million. The CEO of the National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company mentioned that after the JCPOA, many investors from China, Japan, and South Korea expressed interest in investing in the modernization of Iranian refineries, and negotiations are ongoing with them.