Producing gasoline compliant with Euro-5 and Euro-6 emission standards is high on the Arak Refinery agenda and negotiations are underway to obtain necessary licenses and technology from foreign companies.
“Our plans seek to improve the quality of gasoline and boost production," Ali Jamshidi, the refinery's managing director, was quoted as saying by IRNA.
When the Persian Gulf Star Refinery goes on stream, much of the domestic demand for gasoline will be met and grounds will be paved to improve gasoline quality produced in the refinery.
The refinery, touted as the Middle East's largest oil refinery, is under construction in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas. It has the capacity to produce 27 million liters per day of regular gasoline plus 9 million liters of premium gasoline, marketed as 'super'.
Referring to the gasoline production capacity of the refinery, 16 million liters a day, Jamshidi added that plans have been made to start production of Euro-5 gasoline before the fiscal year is out in March 2017.
"Talks are underway for involving international companies in the Imam Khomeini (Shazand) Refinery development plans," he said, noting that the unnamed foreign firms have agreed to issue licenses to the refinery for production of higher-quality oil byproducts including diesel and gasoline.
Noting that during the sanctions era the refining had to reduce its capacity due to lack of equipment and spares, Jamshidi said, "We have achieved self-sufficiency in the production of catalysts used in manufacturing high quality gasoline." According to reports, 1 million barrels of oil per day are refined across nine domestic refineries and plans call for increasing the volume to 3.2 million barrels, albeit with $14 billion in foreign investment.
NIORDC Priority
According to Abbas Kazemi, managing director of National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company, Tehran Oil Refinery is due to produce Euro-5 gasoline, which will be sold only in the capital. NIORDC also plans to increase Euro-4 gasoline output.
Shahrokh Khosravani, NIORDC deputy director, said last month that 22 million liters per day of Euro-4 gasoline was sold in eight cities, adding that the company plans to expand distribution of the high-quality fuel in seven other cities.
Qom, Bandar Abbas, Chabahar, Yazd, Kerman, Bushehr and Rafsanjan are receiving Euro-4 compliant gasoline under a trial program.
More refineries nationwide could embark on producing Euro-5 gasoline, but it requires advanced technology and huge investments, the official noted.
Ahmad Khayyeri, operations manager of the refinery, had earlier announced that the Tehran refinery was in talks with Universal Oil Products, a multinational technology provider in the oil and gas industry, for upgrading the refinery’s gasoline output to Euro-5 standards.
UOP is involved in developing and delivering technology to the petroleum refining, gas processing, petrochemical production, and major manufacturing industries.
According to published reports, daily gasoline consumption in Iran is close to 72 million liters.
Iran plans to produce high-quality gasoline to curb air pollution in many big cities and urban areas. Relevant officials say they also have an eye on bringing in Euro-6 emission standards.
Euro 6 is the latest diesel engine emission legislation introduced by the European Commission. The emission standards are defined in a series of European Union directives on the progressive introduction of increasingly stringent standards.
