An estimated 128 billion liters of crude oil and petroleum byproducts were transported daily via pipelines in 2021, indicating a 65% rise over the last 40 years, managing director of the Iranian Oil Pipeline and Telecommunications Company said.
"Around 68 billion liters of crude and 60 billion liters of derivatives, including gasoline, were transferred through pipelines last year," the Oil Ministry’s news portal also quoted Arsalan Rahimi as saying.
Close to 14,000 km of petroleum pipelines are up and running in the country, of which 11,000 km were laid in the last four decades.
In the absence of expanded pipelines, the company would need at least 60,000 fuel trucks to deliver close to 128 billion liters of crude and its derivatives per annum, he added.
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 said, 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 a higher fatality rate compared to other means of transportation, 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 pipelines, which have been 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 128 billion liters per annum.
