Addressing a ceremony to launch gas storage facilities and tanks of Bidboland Persian Gulf Gas Refinery and singing 8 contracts for collection of associated petroleum gas (APG) in the southwestern city of Mahshahr, Khuzestan Provinces, on Thursday, Mr. Owji called natural gas a clean energy, environmentally friendly, accessible and cheaper than other fossil fuels, adding that the reports from the technical committees and the GECF summit indicate that the golden age of gas had begun and that it would remain on the rise until 2050.

"The growth rate of gas in the energy mix is higher than other fossil fuels," he said, noting: “The price of each cubic meter of gas has reached $2.2 which is partly because of the Russia-Ukraine tensions and is expected to cross $3/cm. But in Iran, gas is supplied to petrochemical plants at a price of 20 cents and about one to two cents for the household consumers thanks due to the high subsidy allocated to it.”

The Minister of Petroleum described the completion of the Bidboland Persian Gulf refinery chain as very exciting and said: "Collecting flared gases is one of the dreams."

Noting that privatization is favored by both the administration and the Ministry of Petroleum, Owji said: "Today, the highest service in the oil and gas industry is investing in this industry. The drop in pressure and the subsequent drop in oil and gas output must be prevented. If we do not invest, if we had a gas deficit of 250 million cubic meters this year, these conditions will be worse in the coming years, and we may be forced to import gas and products.”

He stressed: "For this reason, I say that investing in the oil industry is vital. On the other hand, there is the lowest investment risk and the highest profitability in the field of oil and gas industry.”

A ceremony was held on Thursday to launch the facilities and storage tanks for export products and independent wharf of Bidboland Persian Gulf Gas Refining Company in the presence of Iranian Minister of Petroleum Javad Owji, Morteza Shahmirzaei, the CEO of the National Petrochemical Company, Mohsen Khojastehmehr, the CEO of the National Iranian Oil Company, and Abdolali Ali Asgari, the CEO of the Persian Gulf Petrochemical Industries Company (PGPIC).

Bidboland Persian Gulf independent storage facilities and reservoirs were constructed on a land area of 64 hectares with an investment of €270 million with an annual export capacity of 2 million tons of valuable products including propane, butane, pentane plus.

Bidboland Persian Gulf Gas Refining Company is the largest gas processing facility in the history of Iran's oil industry and the largest gas hub in West Asia in terms of production capacity.

Emphasizing the need to collect burner gases and produce added value, the Minister of Oil said: "We must prevent the burning of these funds and we promise Mr. Raisi that at the end of this government, burner gases west and east of Karun and Khark basin will be collected." It becomes.

Vienna Talks

"I have repeatedly stated that we will not wait for the result of the Vienna talks, and I promise that we will reach the highest oil export capacity within one to two months as soon as the green light of Vienna is on," he said. “And we have started investing seriously besides the talks and have signed $4.5 billion worth of contracts in the last six months.”

Owji underlined signing of the Tabesh pipeline contract with Bank Mellat, development of oil fields, maintenance of production, and projects for collection of associated gases as part of the activity of the oil industry under the Raisi administration, adding: “The approach of the administration and the Ministry of Petroleum is tapping the potentialities of local banks and major holdings.”

He said that if the oil industry operates at full tilt, the country will be run efficiently in various sectors, including revenue generation and employment, and the economy will prosper. “God willing, by the end of the [current calendar] year [to March 20], $12 billion from the export of petrochemicals will be deposited in Iran’s domestic Forex Management Integrated System (locally known as NIMA).”