Mohammad Ali Khatibi, in an interview with Shana, stated that using the empty capacities of offshore refineries in the current situation when the country is facing international sanctions, can be evaluated very strategically and positively, adding: "Perhaps at first glance, taking into account the cost of crude oil, transportation and refining, the use of such refineries cannot be in normal economic conditions, but in this context, the special conditions of the country should be evaluated more carefully.”

Referring to the difficulty of exporting crude oil under the current embargo conditions in the National Iranian Oil Company and the positive trend of this export in the last one year, he said: “Considering the world's ever-increasing need for petroleum products, it seems that embargoing such energy carriers is difficult. Iran’s measures regarding offshore refineries can be a good start for the sustainable supply of products inside and outside of the country.”

The former director of international affairs of the National Iranian Oil Company added: “Considering the global prices of petroleum products, it seems that using the empty capacities of oil refineries abroad can increase Iran's revenues, and on the other hand, it should be noted that repairs, commissioning and the management of foreign refineries in the hands of capable domestic companies can help the issue of oil export, employment and hard currency generation.”

Emphasizing that the goal of Iran's enemies is to reduce oil revenues, Khatibi stated: “The 13th administration’s use of the empty capacity of offshore refineries can weaken the enemy's plan to reduce oil revenues.”

He pointed out that by investing in the oil refineries of other countries, in addition to guaranteeing its own oil export market, Iran can move in the direction of reducing crude sales, adding: “We have seen oil exporters investing in the downstream sectors of other countries to guarantee the market for many years. Many oil-exporting countries participated in the downstream of other countries, including the refining and even petrochemical industries, in order to have guaranteed markets.”

The former director of international affairs of the National Iranian Oil Company said: “The more we can convert and export the products into downstream items, the more value added we will have and the less harm we will suffer in the case of sanctions.”