Iran launches major renovation project at its main oil export terminal

Iran’s Oil Ministry has launched a major project to renovate its main oil export terminal in the Persian Gulf amid reports suggesting that aging facilities in the area have caused minor disruptions to the flow of oil to customers.

CEO of Iran Oil Terminals Company Abbas Assadrouz said on Sunday during a tour of the Kharg Island that funds will soon be available for the renovation project on the island which is responsible for a bulk of Iran’s oil exports.

Assadrouz said the project will be focused on Azarpad wharf which is a key oil export terminal located in the west of Kharg.

He said the repair project will significantly increase oil export capacity from the island.

The announcement comes weeks after reports suggested a pipeline leak at an anchorage area in Kharg had contributed to a month-on-month decline in Iran’s oil exports to private buyers in China in October.

It also comes more than a month after Iran’s Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad toured oil facilities and met operational staff on the Island.

Iranian Oil Ministry authorities said in October that they had used drones to identify several leaks in pipelines supplying oil to Kharg.

With an export capacity of 6 million barrels per day, Kharg was once the world's largest offshore crude oil terminal and is home to some of the oldest oil export facilities in the world.

The renovation project in Kharg has also come amid reports showing that Iran is increasing oil exports via a new terminal it has built outside the Strait of Hormuz where it can supply around 1 million bpd of oil to customers.

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