Atomic Energy Organization of Iran and the Research Institute of Petroleum Industry finalized an agreement on Monday for producing an ultracentrifuge that will be used in upstream petroleum projects.
According to the agreement worth around $870,000, AEOI will build the ultracentrifuge that will be utilized in a RIPI laboratory for research and development projects in the oil industry, ISNA reported.
The agreement, which was a follow-up to a memorandum of understanding signed in April, was finalized before AEOI chief, Ali Akbar Salehi, head of RIPI, Hamidreza Katouzian, and deputy oil minister for research and technology, Mohammad Reza Moqadam.
The wide-ranging agreement calls for expansion of research and development ties between RIPI and AEOI, and implementation of 10 ultracentrifuges in the long run in oil and gas exploration projects.
Centrifuges play an essential role in many types of oil and gas drilling equipment as well as in wastewater treatment, chemical and food processing industries.
Ultracentrifuges are high-speed equipment that separate components of different densities, such as liquids and gases merged into a single mixture. Ultracentrifuges are able to provide very high accelerations that can separate fine particles down to the nano-scale and molecules of different masses.
Katouzian said on the sidelines of the ceremony that the technology deal will curtail the outflow of foreign exchange.
He added that RIPI aims to utilize the ultracentrifuge to extract oil from rocky reservoirs. Most oil and gas deposits are found in sandstone and limestone. These stones are like a hard sponge that absorbs oil and gas and complicates the extraction of hydrocarbons. Iran is reeling from of multifaceted sanctions imposed by the US and the European Union on its nuclear program, which significantly reduced its economy and trade over the past few years.
The production of ultracentrifuges is part of efforts to reduce dependence on foreign technology and investment based on Resistance Economy—a policy proposed by the Leader of Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei to counter sanctions and boost the economy.
