The construction and installation of six hydrocarbon storage tanks at the Persian Gulf Bidboland Gas Refinery in the southern Khuzestan Province is expected to become complete by fall.
“The storage tanks, which can hold close to 192,000 tons of propane, butane and pentane, will expedite the export of gaseous and liquefied fuels to international markets,” Mahmoud Amin-Nejad, managing director of the refinery, told Shana.
Giving a breakdown, the official noted that two tanks will be used to store 90,000 cubic meters of propane, two tanks are expected to hold 44,000 cubic meters of butane and the rest will be filled with 58,000 cubic meters of pentane.
“Costing about $736 million, the facility is being built on a 64-hectare plot in the southern port city of Mahshahr,” he added.
According to Amin-Nejad, the project entails excavation operations, laying 100 km of pipelines and extending 600 kilometers of power transmission lines.
The $3.4 billion Bidboland refinery in oil-rich southern Khuzestan was inaugurated in January. It has a daily capacity of processing 56 million cubic meters of associated gas from the East and West Karoun oilfields that include several large oilfields straddling the Iran-Iraq border, namely Azadegan, Yaran, Yadavaran and Darkhovein.
The huge complex is expected to generate $1.5 billion a year, including $700 million from exports.
“The Bidboland facility has an annual production capacity of 10.4 million tons of methane, which will be injected into the gas grid, and 1.5 million tons of ethane, 1 million tons of propane, 600,000 tons of gas condensates and 500,000 tons of butane that will be fed into the petrochemical plants of Mahshahr and Gachsaran,” Amin-Nejad said.
An estimated 900,000 tons of acid gas produced annually will be injected into oil wells in the Aghajari fields in Khuzestan to boost crude output and produce 600,000 tons of gas condensates.
Jet Fuel
Amin-Nejad noted that the refinery is planning to produce jet fuel.
“A pilot project is underway to desulfurize butane to convert it to jet fuel and so far has cost $60 million,” he said, adding that when completed, the facility would annually earn at least $20 million.
“Removing sulfur from butane is an environment-friendly practice that will cut greenhouse gases in the region in the long run.”
Jet fuel is a specialized type of fuel used to power aircrafts. It is generally of a higher quality than what is used in heating or road transport.
Iran produces fuel used in aircraft and helicopters, and exports it to Armenia, Afghanistan, Iraq and Pakistan.
According to the Aviation Fuel Department at the National Iranian Oil Products Distribution Company, about 1,300 aircraft in Iran need 15 million liters of fuel annually.
Wastewater Treatment
Amin-Nejad said wastewater treatment facilities are being expanded at the refinery to curb water consumption in a region that has been suffering from water scarcity for long.
A new industrial wastewater plant that cost $4.2 million and has made 70% progress will go on stream in September, he added.
Once operational, the plant will recycle close to 260,000 cubic meters of wastewater per annum.
Refineries are among major consumers of water for the cooling towers while large quantities of wastewater are produced during the refining of sour gas.
According to the refinery’s managing director, there are already two wastewater plants in the refinery with online monitoring systems.
These are equipped with a modern vapor recovery unit that can collect environmentally-hazardous vapors to be reprocessed or destroyed. Officials say Bidboland will play a significant role in improving the downstream petrochemical sector.
The refinery plans to build special units to monitor products’ quality and establish the environmental management system of ISO 14001: 2015, which specifies the requirements for an environmental management system to improve environmental protection.
The refinery is also equipped with a modern vapor recovery unit that collects hazardous vapor to be reprocessed or destroyed.
