Iran, Main Gas Supplier to Mideast
The Persian Gulf region holds around 730 billion barrels of proven oil and more than 70 tcm of natural gas reserves. Most countries in the Middle East sit atop huge oil reservoirs, but they lack independent gas reservoirs and mainly benefit from associated gas.
Iran and Qatar are the only two Middle Eastern countries with independent gas reservoirs; therefore, they are the only ones in the region to be able to export gas.
Given the shortage of independent gas reserves in the Arab countries of the Middle East and their growing need for this source of energy, Iran is facing fresh demands for gas delivery.
Ali-Reza Kameli, managing director of National Iranian Gas Exports Company (NIGEC), has said that the top priority for Iran’s gas exports is Persian Gulf countries.
“Persian Gulf littoral states like Oman, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Iraq have concluded that they have no other source of gas more stable than Iran’s,” he said.
Turkey is currently the only importer of Iran’s gas. Iran is expected to start pumping gas to neighboring Iraq in May. Iran will start delivering 4 mcm/d of gas to Iraq and it can raise the volume to 40 mcm/d in cold seasons.
Oman is another future destination for Iran’s gas. During a March 2014 visit to Oman by Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, the two countries signed an agreement for gas exports. The agreement requires Iran to export 10 bcm/year of gas to Oman.
Iran plans to continuously export gas to Oman for a 25-year period and Tehran will gain $60 billion from this volume of gas delivery.
Iran has also held preliminary talks with Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates for gas exports. These talks have yet to be finalized.
Iran has also built its own section of a pipeline for gas exports to Pakistan. As soon as Pakistan completes its own section of the project, gas flow will start.
Afghanistan is also a potential market for Iran’s gas exports. No official talks have so far been held for Iran to export gas to Afghanistan, but the private sector is willing to invest in this field.
Hamid-Reza Araqi, managing director of National Iranian Gas Company, has held out the possibility of Iran’s gas exports to Afghanistan.
“There is currently the possibility of gas supply to Afghanistan’s border towns through a 100-kilometer-long pipeline branching out from the gas network of South Khorasan province,” he said.
US Steel, Banks Affected by Cheap Oil
After a robust year, highlighted by US Steel Corp.'s first annual profit since 2008, the steel industry is facing an unexpected menace in tumbling oil prices, which have forced production cutbacks and even pressured prices for automotive steel.
At the heart of the problem is a build-up since last decade to supply oil and gas drillers. Like many others, steelmakers saw the US energy boom as their salvation. But with oil prices down more than 50% since last summer, energy companies have cut spending on projects requiring steel, and swiftly canceled orders with steel mills.
US Steel Corp. said it plans to idle plants in Illinois and Indiana, laying off 545 workers.
The cuts would take place in March and come on top of the planned layoff of 756 workers and possible closure of two plants in Ohio and Texas announced earlier. The company said those cuts had reflected lower oil prices and the resulting drop in demand for its steel pipe and tubular products used by the oil and gas sector.
The US banks also suffered losses due to plunging oil prices. In recent prices, the banks increased loans allocated for oil and energy sectors so that the contractors could purchase drilling and other necessary equipment.
Petchems, Condensate Make Up 50% of Iran Exports
Gas condensate and petrochemicals account for more than half of Iran’s total exports. Condensate earns Iran more than $13 billion, while petrochemical products bring in some $12 billion.
Last September, in a clear breach of the Geneva Accord, the United States imposed embargo on Iran’s gas condensate exports. However, Iran earned more than $13.65 billion from condensate up to February 9, 2015 with South Pars gas field having provided more than 99 percent. More than 9.3 million barrels of condensate was supplied by Phase 12 of South Pars, the offshore supergiant gas reservoir jointly operated by Iran and Qatar. These figures show 43% growth from a year ago.
Next year budget less dependent on oil income
A lawmaker in favor of next year’s general budget has said next year budget is less dependent on oil revenues in comparison with previous years’budgets.
Mohammadreza Tabesh said oil revenues make up just 540 trillion rials of total revenues of budget which shows the share of oil revenue in total budget has come down considerably. According to him, the government has assigned more funds to development of knowledge based economy including allocation of 300 million dollars to Innovation Fund for backing newly established companies working on scientific subjects.
Tabesh also said that science and technology sector’s credits have risen by
40 percent while 6 trillion rials have been allocated to removing deprivation, up by 70 percent against last year’s figure. Continuation of Healthcare Plan is another privilege of next year’s budget bill which will decrease the amounts people pay for health, he said.
Desulfurization Catalyst Knowledge at RIPI
Iran’s Research Institute of Petroleum Industry (RIPI) has developed technical knowledge for fabricating desulfurization catalysts from petroleum fractions, as well as the alumina base of these catalysts.
“Technical knowledge for the fabrication of desulfurization catalysts from petroleum fractions (naphtha and gasoil) and the alumina base of these catalysts has been developed at RIPI,” RIPI researcher Ahmad Fazlollahi said.
He said the technical savvy has been given to Pars Pigment and Catalyst (PP&C) company for commercialization.
“Desulfurization and denitrogenation processes in the oil refining industry are among the most important refining processes. They are done with the help of hydrogen catalysts,” he said.
Fazlollahi said these processes have been developed for refining units in order to counter the disturbing impacts of sulfur and nitrogen compounds of petroleum fractions on different catalytic compounds as well as their polluting nature.
“In both these processes, sulfur and nitrogen existing in petroleum fractions are converted into hydrogen sulfide and ammoniac with the help of catalysts, and they removed from petroleum fractions,” he said.