Azerbaijan, Baku, Jun.12/ Trend F.Karimov/
Iran has increased oil refining capacity at the Lavan petrochemical facility by 10,000 barrels per day in an effort to counter the US sanctions and export petrochemical products instead of crude oil, the Mehr News agency reported.
A crash plan was launched last month, which led to 10,000 barrels per day increase in the production of gasoline, diesel fuel, and naphtha per day.
Iran's oil refining capacity is currently about 1.85 million barrels per day.
The Obama administration has blacklisted Iranian petrochemical companies, Iran's automotive industry, more than 50 Iranian officials, and has threatened to penalize foreign banks that trade or hold Iran's national currency, the rial.
In January, the Moj News Agency quoted the National Iranian Petrochemical Company official Mohammad Ziar as saying that Iran will establish 11 petrochemical townships in Khuzestan and Bushehr provinces, in the south of the country.
Building these townships is projected to boost petrochemical exports. Through establishing the townships in border provinces, transportation costs will be reduced, he noted.
On January 19, Ziar said that some $8 billion has been invested in revamping refineries in the country.
The money is being spent to revamp Tehran, Arak, Bandar Abbas, and Abadan refineries, he added.
He also said that a number of new refineries will be built in the country.
Iranian refiners have been obliged to supply gasoline meeting Euro-4 standards since the beginning of the next Iranian calendar year (March 21, 2013), the Mehr News Agency quoted Iranian Standards Organization's Deputy Director Bahador Kazemi as saying on January 12.
The produced gasoline currently meets Euro-2 standards, he said, adding that newly established refineries are able to produce gasoline which meets both Euro-4 and Euro-5 standards.
In December 2012, IRNA quoted Ali-Mohammad Sha'eri, the Iranian environment protection department's deputy director, as saying that some 50 million liters of gasoline and diesel, meeting euro-4 and euro-5 standards, will be produced in Iran by the end of the current Iranian calendar year.
The amount of fuel will be produced by Shazand, Tondgouyan, Abadan, and Lavan refineries, he added.
In October 2012, ISNA quoted National Iranian Oil Production and Distribution Company's managing director Alireza Zeighami as saying that Iran is currently producing 25 million liters of premium gasoline per day, meeting euro-4 and euro-5 standards.