TEHRAN (FNA)- Iran announced plans to boost production of Euro-5 quality gasoline to 8 million liters once new units in the countries' Shazand refinery start operation.
Managing Director of National Iranian Oil Refining and Distribution Company (NIORDC) Alireza Zeiqami made the remarks on Sunday, adding that the pre-commissioning of RCD (reduced-crude desulfurization) and RFCC (Residue Fluid Catalytic Cracker) units of Shazand refinery have almost finished and the new gasoline production unit will become fully operational in July.
The official added that when the two units are commissioned, Iran's daily capacity for producing Euro-5 gasoline will increase by eight million liters.
The Imam Khomeini refinery of Shazand is currently producing about eight million liters of quality gasoline and a new plan for increasing the refinery's diesel fuel production will become operational soon.
When in full swing, the second phase of the refinery will be Iran's first petroleum refinery unit which can produce up to 7,500 barrels of propylene per day.
Iran exported 123,000 tons of gasoline to different world countries in 2011, showing a 100% growth compared with the previous year.
Iran exported 123,000 tons of benzene, worth some 134 million US dollars in the year 2011, which was twice its exports of that fuel in the year 2010," Moscow's state-run Voice of Russia radio said earlier this month.
"Afghanistan was the top importer of Iran's fuel in 2011, importing gas worth $51.6 million," the report added.
According to the report, Armenia, the United Arab Emirates, Iraq and Oman are the other major importers of the Iranian benzene.
Afghanistan is the main buyer of Iranian gasoline. Iran's gasoline exports to Afghanistan hit $51.6mln last year. The UAE's import reached $46.6mln, Iraq's portion hit $27.1mln and Oman's share totaled $6.6mln.
Iran which is the world's fourth-biggest crude oil exporter long depended on imported gasoline for 30 to 40 percent of its consumption, but has now become a net exporter.
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(Originally published May 28, 2012, by FARS News Agency.)
