Indeed, technology has come to play a very vital role in the optimization of capacity and in fulfilling objectives put forward by different countries. Moreover, the transfer of technology is paramount to a country"s ability to achieve its refining goals.

A number of the presentations presented in the different sessions at the 1st Iran Oil Refining Forum (held in Tehran in February) presented technological improvements in the field that will have an impact on the future developments within the sector. The ideas and discussion presented by the speakers ranged from technical details to pragmatic solutions aimed at boosting capacity and production.

Speaking in the first session of the two-day forum, Kambiz Sadaghiani, the Vice President of Research Institute of Petroleum Industry (RIPI), presented new technological advances being developed within Iran. His presentation covered two main issues. The first was the process of making fuels from methanol and to maximize carbon efficiency. Sadaghiani detailed the process of how methanol is transformed into fuels and the impact such a process might have on the overall refinery sector. Comparing the new process developed to previous methods, he maintained that "we generally think that going through methanol for getting fuels is a much more efficient method." Such technologies will also be an important factor in meeting global demands. He also mentioned that the current upgrade of technologies "have got limitations," with byproducts such as high sulfur levels and heavy metal levels. Thus, there is a need to look into newer methods and techniques.

RIPI will be building pilot plants for NIORDC which is a "good opportunity presented for experimenting with new technologies."

The second section of Sadaghiani?s presentation dealt with the above-mentioned need for developing novel processes aimed at converting very heavy oil to lighter oil products. The process of heavy residue hydro-conversion is the method being developed by RIPI. This process has a number of advantages such as recovering and regenerating nearly 95 percent of catalysts, reducing sulfur levels, removing heavy metals, and high percentage of conversion of residue.

He then moved to present the break down of the process and the different levels of fuel it has produced. The process will allow for greater "flexibility for refiners to purchase heavier sour crude feedstock," as well as being environmentally responsible and economically feasible. It also provides for high conversion rates and maximizes the yield of light products. In concluding his remarks, Sadaghiani also mentioned that RIPI will be building pilot plants for NIORDC which is a "good opportunity presented for experimenting with new technologies."

Producing More Gas: Jean Sentenac, CEO Axens France, also discussed new techniques for producing gasoline products. He first summarized a general overview of the global refining demand trend which point to higher demand rates for gasoline. The greater demand trend for refined products provide the opportunity for examining different options that the sector is presented with. Sentenac proceeded to present the different options that have been used in different case studies. He mentioned that the Middle East provides a unique environment in which, despite price increases in diesel and oil, projects are still more profitable than in other markets such as Europe. A number of factors are driving this issue such as lower tax rates and cheaper gas injection.

Iran faces a great deficit in its gasoline sector, with it importing a large share of its consumption.

The speaker also focused specifically on Iran and the challenges and opportunities its refining sector faces. Iran faces "a great deficit in its gasoline sector, with it importing a large share of its consumption." The country also has to process heavier crudes that very often contain a high level of metals. In this light, there is a need to adapt existing refineries and to build new ones with Iranian crude specificities in mind and designed for gasoline production. Sentenac also discussed the different projects his company has been licensed to implement within Iran in regards to greater gasoline production.

Another speaker that dealt with this important topic was Tony Hagan, Technical Services Manager (Hydrocracking), Middle East, Criterion Catalysts & Technologies, U.K. Highlighting the important role conversion plays in Iran?s refining industry, Hagan spent most of the presentation discussing hydrocracking technologies within the country. Presenting data compiled from the daily operating reports from the Esfehan refinery presented a number of important issues.

Firstly, the feed quality has remained constant throughout the period of examination, with some variations in nitrogen levels. Secondly, total liquid yields have remained stable. Thirdly, the product quality obtained throughout the cycle has remained stable. Hagan also discussed other technical advances dealing with the process within Iran and the importance of hydrocraker reactor internals in achieving optimum catalyst utilization and maximum run length. This process has an important impact on increasing capacity of the refining sector.

Clean Technologies: In a speech titled, "R&D Aims Clean Technologies for the Next Decade," Houman Nikzat, R&D Manager, EIED, Iran, presented a number of observations regarding challenges facing the Iranian refining sector and processes that provide cleaner fuels for the coming decades. According to the Annual Energy Outlook, Iran consumed over 20 million liters per day of vehicle fuel in 2006, with consumption expected to increase to nearly 30 million liters per day by 2025. Moreover, Iranian refineries have been operating at full capacity in recent years to meet Iran"s current demand needs. Even so, nearly half of all gasoline demand is being imported.

Iranian refineries have been operating at full capacity in recent years to meet Iran"s current demand needs.

Nikzat mentioned that the "NIOC-related office is focused on enhancing the production of a diverse, secure domestic supply of fuels." Efforts under examination include "supporting targeted technology selection or development and demonstration projects to further the use of innovative technologies that will lead to reduced environmental impact and enable the development of fuels from unconventional resources, and performing analysis to identify key industry challenges and technology and policy options for ensuring adequate supplies of clean fuels for Iranian consumers." He also mentioned that meeting these needs will increase the rate of climate-destabilizing factors such as carbon-dioxide emissions. This will call into question, "the sustainability of the current energy system."

Further on, Nikzat highlighted natural gas as a more secure energy source for Iran and called for the country to "switch from oil to natural gas for export, and secure its oil resource for future generation when the shortage of energy resources is more critical and new generation technologies could use oil more effectively than now." He also outlined the different methods by which Iran can produce more gasoline and diesel fuel with which it is facing a shortage. The country can employ conventional technologies for new refineries to expand refining capacity of gasoline and diesel products. It can also undertake technological advances such as using gas condensate derived in South Pars facilities to separate gasoline and using Gas-To-Liquid (GTL) technology to produce gasoline and diesel from natural gas. The mentioned process have the ability of utilizing natural gas as a more secure hydrocarbon resource as a feedstock.

As such, Nikzat called upon the NIOC to "support the development of technologies that can economically convert these resources into high quality, ultra-low sulfur fuels that can be transported to consumers or used in remote locations." It can also develop clean fuels from stranded natural gas reserves that have lower emissions of pollutants and greenhouse gases compared to gasoline and diesel fuel. In conclusion, Nikzat mentioned that there will be a greater focus on technology development in the coming years as Iran strives to meet the demands of its own domestic market as well as global refining demands.

State of the Art Technology: Another speaker at the forum that explained new technologies working within the Iranian refining sector was Morten Krogh Johansen, Area Sales Manager, Technology Division, Haldor Topsoe A/S, Denmark. He discussed projects undertaken within Iran employing new technologies such as two identical two-stage hydrotreaters used at the Esfahan refinery and diesel hyrdrotreaters and a single-stage kerosene hydrotreater used in the Bandar Abbas. He also pointed out that the demand for diesel fuel is increasing while environmental regulations call for sulfur-free diesel. In response to these demands, there is a need to develop new technologies that meet new regulations as well as the supply capacity that is called for by the international supply trend.

Overall a number of leading technological advances were presented by the different speakers at the forum which signaled both the interest of the different participating companies for getting involved in the Iranian market, and the desire of the Iranian refining sector to promote its future developmental plans.