The construction of Shahid Soleimani Petro-Refining Plant will start soon in the southern Hormozgan Province, Oil Minister Javad Owji said.
“With a refining capacity of 300,000 barrels per day, the plant will help increase the production of gasoline and other value-added products,” Owji was quoted as saying by the Oil Ministry’s news agency Shana.
Petro-refineries integrate refining and petrochemical to produce both fuels and raw materials for petrochemical companies.
Such plants have boosted the profitability and development of petro-refineries in developed countries.
The minister noted that raising the gasoline output is important to prevent the fuel shortage in the near future.
In February, Owji warned that if domestic consumption continues to grow, Iran could become a gasoline importer again within a few years.
Iran imported gasoline until 2019 when Persian Gulf Star Refinery was launched and made the country self-sufficient in the production of the fuel.
However, as consumption has had an upward trend since then, officials expressed concerns and devised projects to increase the refining capacity.
The National Iranian Oil Products Distribution Company has predicted gasoline consumption to exceed 130 million liters per day by 2024 while the company’s current production level is 115 ml/d.
Speaking about development plans in other refineries, Owji said, “For refineries such as Bandar Abbas, Tehran and Tabriz, the quality improvement plan have been defined in the form of eight projects.”
The projects are expected to be completed in three years, generate value added, create employment and help preserve the environment, he added.
Mazut to Petcoke
Referring to one of the major projects in Bandar Abbas Refinery, the minister said, “One of the products of the refinery is mazut that will be turned into petroleum coke to create value added.”
The Research Institute of Petroleum Industry has completed a pilot scheme to convert mazut to higher value-added products, including petroleum coke that’s used in steel production.
The research center has signed a contract with Bandar Abbas Oil Refinery for the mass production of coke, which will help Iran become self-sufficient in the product.
When the unit becomes operational within four years, Bandar Abbas Oil Refinery in Hormozgan will produce 620,000 tons of coke per year, which is more than Iran's industrial needs and the surplus will be exported.
Iran is currently dependent on coke imports. The contract is of strategic value for Iran, as the US sanctions imposed on the country have roiled the item’s import to Iran.
“God willing, we will soon become self-sufficient in this area as well,” Owji said.
The projects will take three years and cost an estimated $1 billion that will be made available by the refinery, banks and from advanced sales.
Petcoke production units will be fed by low-sulfur fuel oil (mazut) to produce high value-added items.
Bandar Abbas Oil Refinery is Iran’s third largest with a capacity of 350,000 barrels per day. The feedstock for the refinery is heavy crude plus condensates.
The refinery produces byproducts such as liquid gas, lead-free premium gasoline, jet fuel, white oil, solvents, diesel, raw material for grease, fuel oil, kerosene, asphalt and sulfur. It largely caters to domestic demand and some of its output is exported.
The refinery, located off the Persian Gulf, is a subsidiary of the National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company and accounts for an estimated 18% of the total domestic petroleum products.
Petroleum coke is a final carbon-rich solid material derived from oil refining. There are at least four basic types of petroleum coke, namely needle coke, sponge coke, honeycomb coke and shot coke.
