TEHRAN - Iran’s oil industry has maintained production and continued developing joint fields despite sanctions, financial restrictions, two wars and a U.S. naval blockade, Parliament Energy Committee spokesperson Reza Sepahvand said.
Sepahvand said the Oil Ministry’s performance should primarily be judged by results on the ground, particularly developments in joint fields and strategic projects and whether production and development have continued under difficult conditions.
“The reality is that the oil industry has not faced easy circumstances since the 14th administration took office,” Sepahvand said, pointing to sanctions, international and financial restrictions, difficult regional conditions, the 12-day and 40-day wars and the US naval blockade.
“What matters is that the production and development process at the Oil Ministry did not stop. In fact, new projects were also launched,” he added.
Sepahvand cited Phase 11 of the South Pars gas field as a prominent example, saying its production has more than doubled under the current administration while the number of drilled wells has increased from four to 11.
He said South Azadegan had also registered significant increases in production, drilling, well rehabilitation and processing capacity, while projects at the Bilal and Farzad fields had entered new implementation phases.
The Oil Ministry has also moved forward with the South Pars pressure-boosting project aimed at preserving future production from the strategic gas field, he added.
Sepahvand said progress in joint fields, the more than twofold increase in Phase 11 output and advances at South Azadegan and Bilal showed that the oil industry had remained operational despite sanctions and wartime conditions.
He added that more than 95 million cubic meters of the 230 million cubic meters per day of gas production capacity that had been knocked offline following U.S.-Israeli attacks on four South Pars phases has been restored.
Sepahvand also pointed to the discovery of around 17 trillion cubic feet of gas reserves at the Pazan and Takhteh fields in southern Fars Province as a major achievement of the Oil Ministry during the 14th administration.
He said the CTEP project in West Karoun, aimed at increasing processing capacity by 320,000 barrels per day, as well as development projects at oil and gas fields in northwestern and western Iran, had also been implemented or were underway.
Referring to efforts to curb gas flaring, Sepahvand said around 11.5 million cubic meters of associated flare gas had been collected since the current administration took office.
He expressed hope that, once conditions allow, the program would continue with greater intensity through the end of the administration’s term.
Sepahvand also praised employees in Iran’s refining and distribution sectors, saying they had maintained fuel supplies despite a sharp decline in gasoline imports due to the naval blockade and the destruction of most oil-storage facilities in Tehran during attacks.
“Fuel distribution not only did not stop in Tehran, but continued with greater strength, to the point that no gasoline queues formed,” he said.
The lawmaker said domestic gasoline production had increased by more than 10 million liters per day compared with last year, reaching nearly 132 million liters per day.
He added that CNG distribution and the conversion of vehicles to dual-fuel systems had been made free of charge, while fuel consumption had been managed in a way that reduced the growth rate of gasoline consumption in 1405 compared with 1404 to zero.
In the years preceding the 14th administration, annual gasoline consumption had grown by around 6%, he said.
Sepahvand said the Oil Ministry should ultimately be assessed by measurable results.
“Every barrel of oil and every cubic meter of gas added to the country’s production, every well brought online in a joint field and every project that moves from planning to implementation is a step toward Iran’s national interests and energy security,” he said.
Sepahvand said thousands of oil-industry employees continue to work at sea, on platforms and drilling rigs, in refineries and across operational regions.
“In difficult circumstances, the best news for the people is that the country’s oil industry is standing, production continues and development of joint fields has not stopped,” he said.
He added that Parliament and its Energy Committee would, alongside their oversight responsibilities, support measures that increase production, strengthen energy security and safeguard national interests.
Sepahvand concluded by thanking oil-industry employees for maintaining production and the country’s energy security and paid tribute to Oil Ministry personnel killed during the 12-day and 40-day wars.