On Wednesday, Keramat Veis-Kerami, the CEO of NIOPDC, attended the signing ceremony for the MoU on "Renewal and Strengthening of the Petroleum Product Transport Fleet" and highlighted the crucial role of transportation in petroleum product distribution.

He noted, "As we approach winter, the importance of fuel distribution increases, with about 320 million liters of petroleum products being transported daily by over 16,000 tankers around the clock."

Veis-Kerami emphasized the importance of road tankers in fuel distribution, saying: "Given the massive scale of product transfer in the country, renewing and strengthening the transport fleet has become a priority for NIOPDC. This MoU was signed to support national capacity by collaborating with domestic automotive companies. By 2024, alongside record-breaking fuel deliveries to power plants, we aim to play a key role in strengthening and renewing the petroleum transport fleet."

He further added that over 92 million liters of non-power plant diesel are distributed daily across the country. "Fuel deliveries to power plants in Azar (the ninth month of Iranian calendar) have reached the highest levels in the company’s history. The average daily delivery of power plant diesel in Azar was 51 million liters, and fuel oil was 25 million liters, totaling 76 million liters of liquid fuel delivered to power plants."

Need to renew fleet

Ali Akbar Arab-Ameri, NIOPDC's director of supply and distribution, also emphasized the importance of renewing the fleet during the ceremony.

"Currently, around 37 million liters of allocated fuel for power plants are transported daily by tankers from the southern regions to various parts of the country. Therefore, renewing and strengthening the petroleum transport fleet is a top priority for NIOPDC."

Hamid Hashemian, president of the Association of Petroleum Transport Companies, stated that the national transport fleet consists of 480,000 vehicles, with approximately 16,000 tankers dedicated to transporting petroleum products around the clock.

Five of the MoUs for the "Renewal and Strengthening of the Petroleum Transport Fleet" were signed between Sina Bank, NIOPDC, and the following automotive companies: Dimadiesel, Bahman Diesel, Shayan Diesel, Sepehr Asa, and Arian Pars Motor.

Additionally, NIOPDC signed two other tripartite MoUs with Pilsan Automotive, in cooperation with Bank Mellat, and Ariadiesel, in collaboration with Bank of Industry and Mine, for a total of 3,000 vehicle renewals.