Azerbaijan, Baku, Nov.11 / Trend F.Milad/
With around 900 billion cubic meters increase in the past two years, Iran in-situ natural gas reserves has surged to 34 trillion cubic meters, an official with Iran's Oil Ministry stated.
Mohsen Khojaste-Mehr told the Mehr news agency that extensive operations are underway to explore new gas deposits across the country which will probably increase the country's proven gas reserves.
Iran's fifth five-year development plan (2010-2015) has envisaged boosting the country's gas production by 250 million cubic meters per day to reach 1.4 billion cubic meters per day.
Mohammad-Ali Emadi, the National Iranian Oil Company's research and technological director, has stated that Iran's natural gas reserves will last up to 100 years.
Deputy oil minister Javad Oji said in October once all phases of the South Pars gas field come on stream, the country's natural gas output will increase by 700-720 million cubic meters in the next three years.
According to Oji, by operating all phases of South Pars and producing 1.2 billion cubic meters of natural gas, Iran can earn annually $100 billion revenue from gas selling.
The managing director of the Pars Oil and Gas Company, Mousa Souri, has said all phases of the South Pars will come on line by October 2015.
Iran sits on the world's second largest natural gas reserves after Russia and is trying to grow its gas production by increasing foreign and domestic investments, especially in its South Pars gas field.
The field has 14 trillion cubic meters of natural gas (about eight percent of the world's reserves) and more than 18 billion barrels of liquefied natural gas (LNG) resources.