Amin said that overhaul was last done in 2013 at the Shazand refinery, adding that local contractors and manpower were instrumental in the overhaul operation. Eighty percent of manpower hired for the refinery overhaul were from the city of Shazand who had undergone health, safety, environment (HSE) training.
He said that two more phases of overhaul of this refinery would be done this year, adding that in each phase, four to six sections will be overhauled.
Petrochemical Sales at $1.2bn
Persian Gulf Petrochemical Industries Co. (PGPIC) generated $1.2 billion by selling petrochemicals during the first quarter of the current calendar year (started March 21), the company's CEO said.
"Without any restrictions, we continue supplying necessary hard currency within the framework of our commitments," Jafar Rabiei said.
Addressing a ceremony for commissioning a petrochemical fraction separation unit in Assaluyeh, he said: "The petrochemical industry and PGPIC, from the very beginning of notification of economic and foreign currency policy, expressed its readiness to help ease current conditions, and it has done its utmost to fulfill its commitments with regard to product exports."
He said that not a cent of the $1.2 billion offered by PGPIC was traded outside the foreign exchange integrated system.
"Foreign currency supply has increased year-on-year, and we will continue to provide currency without any restrictions within the framework of our obligations," said Rabiei.
Taqi Sanei, CEO of Nouri Petrochemical Plant, said LTE was the second development project at the petrochemical plant for separating light and heavy fractions to produce HLTE and LLTE.
Noting that LTE loading and sale was limited, he said: "The two new products obtained from LTE conversion could be sold and loaded on ordinary tankers."
He put at 65% the share of Iranian manufacturers and contractors in this project.
Q1 Gas Exports Up 9%
Iran's gas exports to neighboring countries increased 9% year-on-year to 3.3 bcm during the first quarter of the current calendar year (started March 21), the dispatching director of National Iranian Gas Company (NIGC) said.
Mehdi Jamshidi Dana said gas delivery to power plants, gas injection to oil reservoirs and total exports during the first quarter showed significant growth year-on-year.
"Gas delivery to power plants reached 19.2 bcm, up 4.7% year-on-year," he said.
He added that extraction rate from gas reservoirs over this time grew to 60.8 bcm.
Jamshidi Dana also said that sweet gas injection into oil reservoirs reached 3.7 bcm, up 2.7-fold year-on-year.
According to Jamshidi Dana, after the remaining 100-kilometer section of the Iran Gas Trunkline 6 (IGAT6) became operational, gas injection started. The completion of the 100km section of IGAT6 in the new Iranian year would be instrumental in exporting gas to Iraq and supplying gas sustainably to western Iran.
IGAT6 is being used for gas export to Baghdad. The same trunkline is to supply gas to Basra, too.
No Indemnity to Total
Iran's Minister of Petroleum Bijan Zangeneh said France's energy giant Total would not receive any indemnity if it decided to pull out of the South Pars gas field development project.
"The structure of new oil contracts is such that if implementation of contract becomes impossible for the foreign party to contract, and announces this issue it can pull out, but it will not be indemnified until the project has been completed," Zangeneh said.
He was referring to the development of Phase 11 of South Pars gas field by a Total-led consortium comprising China's CNPC and Iran's Petropars.
He said that under the terms of the agreement, CNPC would take over if Total quits.
"Total has not yet pulled out of the agreement," he said, adding that its 60-day deadline was being numbered.
"Total is unlikely to win US waiver for presence in Iran, but if the second company, the Chinese firm, also decides to leave the project, the third company will take over," said the minister.
Zangeneh said Total had spent $60 million in this project, adding that the Iranian parliament and government agreed on the necessity of attracting foreign investment and technology for developing the petroleum industry.
"There was no discrepancy between the parliament and government and Hydrocarbon Resources Monitoring Committee, in which senior officials from three branches of government sit, had considered the agreement to be in the best interests of the country," he added.
Zangeneh also touched on the 174th ministerial meeting of the OPEC Conference, saying the meeting endorsed the resolution adopted during the October 2016 meeting on cutting 1.2 mb/d from output.
He said that OPEC's May output was 780,000 b/d less than the agreed level.
"If you refer to the OPEC 174th statement, you will see that despite alleged 800,000 b/d increase in the OPEC output, there is no such figure therein," he added.
"Some governments intend to send positive signals to the market or the US. It has nothing to do with the OPEC decision. The criterion has been the statement signed by the 14 OPEC members," said Zangeneh.
He said that OPEC accepted Iran's proposal, adding: "Iran had suggested that arrangements should be made for any extra production after members reach 100% compliance."
Zangeneh said the latest OPEC statement was clear and transparent.
"Iran will follow up on the implementation of this decision and if any country interprets the decision differently, OPEC will be officially notified," he said.
Zangeneh said Russia told the OPEC meeting, it could no longer continue being committed to production cut agreement. "Russia's justification for increased