oil installations to the Hoor al-Azim Lagoon caused some oil installations to be submerged in water due to heavy rain.While nearly 85% of the Hoor al-Azim Lagoon is full of water, there were rumors running around that the Petroleum Ministry had rerouted the flow of water into surrounding villages in order to safeguard oil installations in West Karoun. But aerial images and field visits prove that the lagoon is filled with water.Zangeneh dismissed rumors of the rerouting of water to villages, saying: “Most oil wells in West Karoun are under water. But we did not stop the flow of water into the Hoor al-Azim with the aim of keeping oil production running. We had never such intention and we believe that natural life and ecosystem should exist in the Hoor.” The minister said he had opposed to a plan to dry the Hoor in 2013. “I said it would be a crime against humanity. From the very beginning I was opposed to any manipulation of the Hoor al-Azim ecosystem and I announced that I will allocate no resources for that purpose and that the Hoor should be back to its normal condition.”“How are we working in the Persian Gulf and installing 100-meter-high jackets? If need be we can install platforms in the Hoor. We do by no means stop natural life and the free cycle of nature. It has never been our agenda,” said the minister. 50 Sluices in Hoor al-AzimHoor al-Azim is divided into five sections, covering a total of 300 oil wells. Touraj Dehqani, managing director of PEDEC, said about 50 sluices were cut in the Hoor to allow for the free flow of oil.During our visit to the lagoon, water level was rising. We stepped into a road which stretched from the South Azadegan to the North Yaran oil field. It means that the northernmost part of the South Azadegan field was under water.Majid Najarian, project manager for wellhead equipment and line popes at the South Azadegan project, said: “As you can see the water levels are so high that we need to take a boat.”He said four West Karoun oil projects were under water, adding that measures had been taken to spare the lagoon any harm in the face of rising waters.Dehqani said that the level of water in different parts was not identical, adding that water levels in the 5th reservoir were higher due to the lower depth of the reservoir.Situation under ControlReza Dehqan, deputy CEO of NIOC for development and engineering, said: “Thanks to the arrangements made by NIOC a flood which could have posed a serious threat to the petroleum industry had been contained and we faced minimum damage.” He added that there were no fatalities in the petroleum industry. Referring to the existence of eight dams in Khuzestan Province and the proximity of two dams to the lagoon, he said: “Given proximity to these dams, PEDEC had to exercise selective control in managing the Hoor al-Azim water to spare the surrounding cities and villages any harm and keep oil installations unharmed. I believe that this task was fulfilled and the company went even beyond its obligations.”He noted that the measures undertaken so far were mainly preventive rather than reactive. Oil recovery from West Karoun is a priority for Petroleum Ministry, because most oil fields located in that area are shared with Iraq. Dehqani said oil production from the West Karoun oil fields had not declined despite the recent wave of floods. North Azadegan, South Azadegan, North Yaran, South Yaran and Yadavaran are jointly owned by Iran and Iraq