Baku, Azerbaijan, April 3
By Dalga Khatinoglu - Trend:
The managing director of Iran's Natural Gas Storage Company says the country's gas recovery capacity will reach 30 million cubic meters per day once an underground gas storage facility in Shoorijeh region comes on stream.
On March 3, the Mehr News Agency quoted Masoud Samivand as saying that the Shoorijeh facility will increase the country's gas refining capacity by 20 million cubic meters per day.
Iran's daily gas production hit 575 million cubic meters in the past Iranian calendar year, which ended on March 20. Considering that gas consumption rises during cold seasons and falls during warm seasons, Iran can store its excess produced gas at storage facilities and reuse it during cold seasons.
The official added that some 9-10 million cubic meters of gas were taken per day from Sarajeh facility in the city of Qom last winter and injected to the national gas network.
Once the second gas storage facility (Shoorijeh) comes on stream in the current year (March 2014-March 2015), Iran will become the holder of the largest gas storage facilities in the Middle East and one of the five largest in the world, he said.
Shoorijeh facility will be inaugurated in northeastern Khorasan province in the current year, he said, adding that the project will boost the country's gas recovery capacity will reach 30 million cubic meters per day.
Shoorijeh facility will increase the country's gas refining capacity by 20 million cubic meters per day, he reiterated.
The official noted that 220 places nationwide have been identified to establish storage facilities.
Iran sits on the world's largest natural gas reserves. The country's estimated reserves are around 33.6 trillion cubic meters. The country plans to inaugurate Phases 12, 15, and 16 of the South Pars gas field in the current year to increase its gas production capacity 80-100 million cubic meters per day. Development of the three phases has progressed by 92 per cent. It is probable that Phases 17 and 18 of the gas field, which are complete by 82 per cent, would also come on stream.
Phase 12 is projected to yield 80 million cubic meters of gas, while other phases are projected to yield 50 million cubic meters.
No phases of the South Pars gas field, which is shared with Qatar, have come on stream in recent years. Iran's share of the gas field is divided into 29 phases, but just 10 phases are currently operational. The country has recently started producing 10 million cubic meters of gas from the phase 12.