Close to 354 million liters of crude oil and its derivatives have been transported daily via pipelines in the last 12 months, indicating a 65% rise over the last 40 years, managing director of the Iranian Oil Pipeline and Telecommunications Company said.
"Close to 14,000 km of oil and petroleum pipelines are up and running in the country, of which 11,000 km were laid in the last four decades," IRNA also quoted Arsalan Rahimi as saying.
In the absence of expanded pipelines, the company would need at least 60,000 fuel trucks to deliver close to 129 billion liters of crude and its derivatives per annum, he added.
Giving a breakdown, he noted that around 69 billion liters of crude and 60 billion liters of oil byproducts have been transferred through pipelines since March 2021.
Rahimi said moving oil derivatives by road doubles the risk of accidents and adds to air pollution.
The cost and risk of road transport are high because tanker trucks are basically used for transportation over short distances.
“In terms of energy use, road transport is the least efficient,” he stressed, noting that the approximate cost of moving a barrel of oil by road is five times more than the pipeline.
Another important variable is the safety factor.
Data released by the National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company show trucking oil has much higher fatalities compared to other methods, such as railroads and pipelines.
Road transport for transporting oil and other products remains crucial due to the lack of rail infrastructure. But this mode is also the riskiest compared to other supply systems and poses the biggest threat to human life, economic cost and the environment.
IOPTC, a subsidiary of NIORDC, is in charge of transporting crude oil and petroleum products across the country.
“There was no serious issue regarding our pipelines during this period," he said, adding that the pipelines are monitored 24/7.
The pipeline, which extended by nearly 7,000 km in four decades, now stretches over 14,000 kilometers.
The grid moved 22 billion liters of crude and petroleum products in 1979. It currently hauls 129 billion liters per annum.
Intelligent Pigging
The official said the company uses intelligent pigging of pipelines, controls metal corrosion with cathodic protection technique and regularly inspects installations for safety reasons.
IOPTC is also responsible for supplying power plants with diesel in Tehran, Alborz and Gilan provinces when they face gas shortages, which is the primary feedstock.
The company has enhanced the life of crude oil and byproduct pipelines by undertaking rehabilitation and using new coating.
According to the official, the construction of new pipelines to transfer petroleum products to southern oil terminals tops the IOPTC agenda because "this approach has always had priority over other means of supply, such as using tanker trucks".
Based on NIORDC data, the output of petroleum products such as gasoline, diesel and kerosene increased by 6% in Iranian refineries last year compared to a year ago.
In 2020, refineries received 2.045 million barrels per day of feed, including crude oil and gas condensate, while the figure reached 2.710 million bpd in 2021.
This indicates a 6% increase in the feedstock of refineries, which consequently led to a rise in the output of petroleum products.
Hauling oil products via pipelines reduces the possibility of delays that normally occur due to road closures when the regions are blanketed with snow.
One key advantage of using pipelines is in the environmental sphere. Pipelines cause very little, if any, damage to the environment or air pollution whereas the huge tankers and gas-guzzlers plying the national highways 24/7 emit excessive amounts of CO2 and worsen air pollution.
