Saeid Tavakoli, managing director of the company, said Tuesday that the new facilities include four units at the Shahid Qorbani-Motlaq gas compression station in Dehshir, four units at the Shahid Akhlaqi station in Borazjan and the opening of the Sari pipeline operations center.

He added that work will also begin on 688 new urban, rural and industrial gas supply projects worth about 150 trillion rials, as well as nationwide pipeline development projects valued at more than €229 million to strengthen the transmission network.

Tavakoli highlighted a new project to store natural gas in the Nasrabad salt dome, the first of its kind in Iran. He said the dome’s location near the country’s energy hub makes it a strategic choice for gas storage. The project will involve a 340 million-euro investment.

“Good is not enough. We must aim for excellent,” Tavakoli said, reflecting on the company’s performance last winter. He noted that despite one of the harshest winters in decades, his colleagues managed to maintain uninterrupted household gas supply even with an energy imbalance of 350 to 400 million cubic meters.

He credited early planning by the Oil Ministry and coordinated management across the energy sector, adding that over 208 turbocompressors were in service simultaneously for the first time. The Shahid Hasheminejad refinery also operated without interruption throughout the winter, he said.

Tavakoli acknowledged that energy imbalances cannot be resolved in the short term, stressing the need for both increased production and consumption management. He said the company has documented its experiences from last year in a knowledge management book to guide future planning.

Looking ahead, he said power plant fuel reserves have risen by more than 60% compared with last year, and the company is prepared to ensure stable supplies during the coming winter despite ongoing challenges, including the effects of regional conflict.

Gas penetration in Iran now exceeds 95%, Tavakoli said, with about 80% of the country’s power plants dependent on natural gas — far higher than the global average of 23%.

He added that during recent attacks on Tehran and other regions, the company’s top priority was maintaining uninterrupted supply to households. Emergency teams were stationed at key points around the clock to guarantee reliable transmission to homes and power plants even under wartime conditions.